Watercolour, A Village Street with a Shed, Cottages and Windmill, by John Constable, ca. 1834 or 1835

A watercolour of a village street with a shed, cottages and windmill, seen from a low vantage point.

Given by Isabel Constable, daughter of the artist

This is a page from a sketchbook of uncertain date, possibly used during a visit to George Constable at Arundel in 1834 or 1835. The vigorous, unpolished manner certainly accords with Constable's late watercolours.

'In 1835 Constable's sole exhibit at the Royal Academy was 'The Valley Farm' (see Nos. 373-377 [143-1888, 140-1888, 1249-1888, 1248-1888, 600-1888]). He visited George Constable at Arundel in July. He visited Worcester (where paintings by him had been exhibited in July) to give three lectures, in October.'

[G Reynolds, 1973, p. 221]

Reynolds cat. nos. 385-394 evidently come from the same sketchbook, its pages measuring approximately 130 x 212 mm and the paper bearing the truncated watermark 'J WHATMAN 182'. The only internal clue to the places where the sketchbook was used or to its date is the almost illegible inscripton on Reynolds. no. 385; if this is read as 'Findon Wood' then the book was used by Constable on a visit to George Constable at Aurndel in 1834 or 1835. This supposition is borne out by the style of the drawings, many of which are in the vigorous, unpolished manner of Constable's last years.

This sketch of a village street may have been made during one of Constable's visits to his brother George at Arundel, Sussex, in 1834 or 1835. The vigorous, unpolished manner is characteristic of his late watercolours, although the low viewpoint is somewhat unusual.

230-1888