View on the Stour near Dedham (1822)
John Constable (1776-1837)
oil on canvas, 51 x 74 inches
The Stour Valley was a constant source of inspiration for Constable, who was born a few miles from the scene of this painting. As a portrait of a specific place, it is rich with details about the life and activity of an area he knew and loved.
Large in scale, View on the Stour was one of a series of "six-foot" canvases, all representing his native land, produced for exhibition at the Royal Academy between 1819 and 1825. Constable rightly felt these works would secure his reputation as a landscape painter.
View on the Stour together with The Hay Wain was also shown in Paris in 1824, where their truthfulness to nature had an immediate impact on French artists of the period such as Eugene Delacroix, who repainted one of his works upon seeing Constable's pictures. The work was purchased by Mr. Huntington in 1925. |