John Constable
Print
1843
1843
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This print is from one of the most important series of mezzotints ever to be published.
Towards the end of his life, John Constable embarked upon a project to supervise and publish a series of mezzotints based on a selection of his oil sketches, finished paintings and possibly one or two watercolours and drawings. Various Subjects of English Landscape, Characteristic of English Scenery, from Pictures Painted by John Constable, R.A., better known as English Landscape, consisted of 22 landscape subjects executed in mezzotint by David Lucas, organised into six parts and published between June 1830 and July 1832. Constable revised the series in 1833 in what is referred to as the second edition. After his death in 1837 there were subsequent reprints of the material, plates begun during his lifetime were completed and published and Lucas went on to engrave and publish entirely new plates.
Drawing upon the precedents of Claude Lorrain and J.M.W. Turner, the ageing and still misunderstood Constable used English Landscape to explain and justify his life’s work. Choosing subjects of both a personal and historical significance, he sought to promote the appreciation of England’s scenery but, more importantly, to highlight nature’s guiding principle of chiaroscuro showing the influence of light and shadow upon landscape.
For this magnus opus Constable engaged the services of David Lucas, a young and little-known mezzotinter and former pupil of Samuel Reynolds, who rapidly became a master under Constable’s tutelage not so much copying as translating the painter’s original works into a new graphic language. Through a brilliant use of mezzotint, and occasional drypoint and etching, Lucas conveyed the tactile quality of Constable’s brushstrokes and both his sharp contrasts of light and dark and subtle tonal gradations. The project was a commercial failure for Constable while Lucas never again reached the artistic heights he employed in this endeavour. He worked for lesser artists after Constable’s death and eventually died in Fulham union workhouse.
Towards the end of his life, John Constable embarked upon a project to supervise and publish a series of mezzotints based on a selection of his oil sketches, finished paintings and possibly one or two watercolours and drawings. Various Subjects of English Landscape, Characteristic of English Scenery, from Pictures Painted by John Constable, R.A., better known as English Landscape, consisted of 22 landscape subjects executed in mezzotint by David Lucas, organised into six parts and published between June 1830 and July 1832. Constable revised the series in 1833 in what is referred to as the second edition. After his death in 1837 there were subsequent reprints of the material, plates begun during his lifetime were completed and published and Lucas went on to engrave and publish entirely new plates.
Drawing upon the precedents of Claude Lorrain and J.M.W. Turner, the ageing and still misunderstood Constable used English Landscape to explain and justify his life’s work. Choosing subjects of both a personal and historical significance, he sought to promote the appreciation of England’s scenery but, more importantly, to highlight nature’s guiding principle of chiaroscuro showing the influence of light and shadow upon landscape.
For this magnus opus Constable engaged the services of David Lucas, a young and little-known mezzotinter and former pupil of Samuel Reynolds, who rapidly became a master under Constable’s tutelage not so much copying as translating the painter’s original works into a new graphic language. Through a brilliant use of mezzotint, and occasional drypoint and etching, Lucas conveyed the tactile quality of Constable’s brushstrokes and both his sharp contrasts of light and dark and subtle tonal gradations. The project was a commercial failure for Constable while Lucas never again reached the artistic heights he employed in this endeavour. He worked for lesser artists after Constable’s death and eventually died in Fulham union workhouse.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Title | John Constable (assigned by artist) |
| Materials and techniques | Mezzotint |
| Brief description | Mezzotint, Portrait of John Constable, by David Lucas after C.R. Leslie, 1843. From the book Memoirs of the Life of John Constable, Esq. R.A. Composed Chiefly of his Lettersby C.R. Leslie, R.A., 1843, wtih a red binding and brown cover and containing 24 prints and text. |
| Physical description | Print from a book with a red binding and brown cover, containing 24 prints and text. |
| Dimensions |
|
| Marks and inscriptions | Lettered below image: C.R. Leslie, R.A./D. Lucas./John Constable/London, Published 1843 by J Carpenter, Old Bond Street. |
| Credit line | Accepted in lieu of Inheritance Tax by H M Government from the estate of the Hon. Christopher Lennox-Boyd and allocated to the Victoria and Albert Museum 2015. |
| Object history | This print is from the Lennox-Boyd collection of mezzotints by David Lucas, chiefly after John Constable, acquired in lieu of Inheritance Tax by H M Government from the estate of the Hon. Christopher Lennox-Boyd and allocated to the Victoria and Albert Museum in 2015. Lennox-Boyd formed the finest collection of British mezzotints in private hands anywhere, totalling approximately 50,000 prints. While his main focus was mezzotints, his collection also contained 18th century picture frames, antique women’s shoes, fans and printed handkerchiefs. He also collected printed ephemera, examples of which the museum has also acquired, and watercolours in the 1970s. In 1963 Lennox-Boyd bought Sanders of Oxford, on the High Street, transforming it from a bookshop into a premier seller of fine prints, maps, engravings and 20th-century etchings. He published several works including Theatre Prints in the Age of Garrick and George Stubbs: The Complete Engraved Works. |
| Place depicted | |
| Summary | This print is from one of the most important series of mezzotints ever to be published. Towards the end of his life, John Constable embarked upon a project to supervise and publish a series of mezzotints based on a selection of his oil sketches, finished paintings and possibly one or two watercolours and drawings. Various Subjects of English Landscape, Characteristic of English Scenery, from Pictures Painted by John Constable, R.A., better known as English Landscape, consisted of 22 landscape subjects executed in mezzotint by David Lucas, organised into six parts and published between June 1830 and July 1832. Constable revised the series in 1833 in what is referred to as the second edition. After his death in 1837 there were subsequent reprints of the material, plates begun during his lifetime were completed and published and Lucas went on to engrave and publish entirely new plates. Drawing upon the precedents of Claude Lorrain and J.M.W. Turner, the ageing and still misunderstood Constable used English Landscape to explain and justify his life’s work. Choosing subjects of both a personal and historical significance, he sought to promote the appreciation of England’s scenery but, more importantly, to highlight nature’s guiding principle of chiaroscuro showing the influence of light and shadow upon landscape. For this magnus opus Constable engaged the services of David Lucas, a young and little-known mezzotinter and former pupil of Samuel Reynolds, who rapidly became a master under Constable’s tutelage not so much copying as translating the painter’s original works into a new graphic language. Through a brilliant use of mezzotint, and occasional drypoint and etching, Lucas conveyed the tactile quality of Constable’s brushstrokes and both his sharp contrasts of light and dark and subtle tonal gradations. The project was a commercial failure for Constable while Lucas never again reached the artistic heights he employed in this endeavour. He worked for lesser artists after Constable’s death and eventually died in Fulham union workhouse. |
| Bibliographic reference | |
| Other number | P38,582 - Previous owner's number |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | E.1103:1-2016 |
About this object record
Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
| Record created | October 18, 2016 |
| Record URL |
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest
