Movement, Style, School or Type of Art:
Romanticism
Date and Place of Birth:
June 11, 1776, East Bergholt, Suffolk, England
Life:
Meant to take over the family businesses, Constable instead turned to art. Art remained most ungrateful for his sacrifice throughout his lifetime, and he went undervalued (save by French painters) until the early 20th century - despite every effort and stylistic change. Moody by nature, this and his wife's early death saw him paint increasingly 'stormy' outdoor scenes. Best remembered for his landscapes, Constable supported his family with steady income from fine, if lesser-known, portraiture.
Important Works:
- The White Horse, 1819
- The Haywain, 1821
- Rainstorm off the Coast at Brighton, ca. 1824-28
- The Leaping Horse, 1825
- The Glebe Farm, ca. 1830
Date and Place of Death:
March 31, 1837, Hampstead, England
Sources and Further Reading
- Lambert, Ray. John Constable and the Theory of Landscape Painting.
New York: Cambridge University Press, 2004.
- Parkinson, Ronald. John Constable: The Man and His Art.
London: Victoria & Albert Museum, 1998.
- Rosenthal, Michael. Constable.
London: Thames & Hudson, 1987.
- Thornes, John E. John Constable's Skies: A Fusion of Art and Science.
Birmingham, UK: University of Birmingham, University Press, 2001.
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