Constable, John

LANDSCAPE PAINTER (ENGLAND)
BORN 11 Jun 1776, East Bergholt, Suffolk - DIED 31 Mar 1837, London
GRAVE LOCATION London: St. John-at-Hampstead, Old Churchyard, Church Row, Hampstead

John Constable was born in East Bergholt, Suffolk as the son of a corn merchant. He was supposed to enter his father's business, but in 1799 he was allowed to enter the schools of the Royal Academy and by 1803 he was exhibiting at the Royal Academy.

His childhood friendship with Maria Bicknell turned into love from 1809 onwards, but in 1816 her grandfather opposed their engagement because of his social status. After he inherited part of the family business he married Maria in October, 1816.

In 1819 he became an Associate of the Royal Academy and his "Hay Wain" (1821) won a gold medal at the Paris salon of 1824.

Maria died in 1828 from tuberculosis after giving birth to their seventh child, aged only 41. Although he became a member of The Royal Academy of Arts in 1829, he was always more popular in France than in England. Constable died in 1837 London and was buried at the old churchyard of St. John-at-Hampstead. His daughter left an important collection of his work to the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

Related persons
• influenced Huet, Paul
• was a friend of Leslie, Charles
• was written about by Leslie, Charles
• influenced Menzel, Adolf

Images

John Constable's tomb at St. John-at-Hampstead, London.
Picture by Androom (13 Aug 1997)

 

Sources
• Murray, Peter & Linda Murray, The Penguin Dictionary of Arts & Artists, Fourth Edition, Penguin Books, Harmondsworth, 1981
• Reeth, Adelaïde van & Guido Peeters, Herinneringen in Steen, De Haan/Unieboek, Houten, 1988
John Constable - Wikipedia


Constant de Rebecque, Benjamin

Published: 01 Jan 2006
Last update: 25 Apr 2022