The Story Behind these John Constable Prints

John Constable

Constable (1776-1837) was an English painter during the era of Romanticism. He was born in Suffolk in a village called East Bergholt and used the surrounding scenes as subjects for several of his landscape prints. The area is now famously known as Constable Country and visitors are still able to explore many of the homes and gardens depicted throughout these John Constable prints, such as Stratford Mill.

He had a deep connection with nature and observed the changing seasons and impacts of weather through his paintings. His approach was naturalistic, and he did not favour surrealism or fantastical features. John Constable described himself as ‘the man of clouds’ and used his depiction of the sky to represent his feelings and fascination with the natural world.

His beloved wife, Maria, died of tuberculosis in 1828 and his paintings evolved to portray his devastation; with dark, moody skies and castle ruins. John Constable said ‘the face of the world has totally changed to me’ but as his grief lifted over time, his art began to include some storms clearing and even a few rainbows of hope. Painting scenes of nature was his vessel to communicate his emotions, and this holds a bold presence across these John Constable prints.