John Constable

John Constable’s works have come to be seen as quintessential representations of the English countryside. Born in Suffolk, he painted its scenery so often that the county is now known as “Constable country”. He pioneered the use of open-air sketches, to be worked up in the studio. His style involved expressive brushwork and rough impastos to capture the fleeting effects of light and rapidly changing weather conditions. Carrying on from the 17th Century Dutch tradition, his style aimed at naturalism, not idealisation. His most famous work remains The Hay Wain (1821), which won a gold medal at the Paris Salon of 1824. Indeed, he had a huge influence on French painting, admired as he was by Delacroix, the Barbizon School and the Impressionists. However, he enjoyed less success in his home country, where he had to wait until 1829 before being made a full Royal Academician. However, along with Turner, he is today considered Britain’s greatest landscape painter.