Late Constable

Charming exhibition at the Royal Academy looking at the later works of John Constable and how his style changed in his later years.

The show started with the exhibition at the annual Royal Academy show of the last of his great six-footer paintings, “The Leaping Horse” and they had the finished work from their own collection hung next to the full-sized sketch from the Victoria and Albert Museum. It was fascinating to look at the difference in composition and painting style. There were other good examples of the sketch and finished work hung together throughout the show.

I think my favourites were the small sketches, often done en plein air, which were full of life and observation. It was a nice touch to have a room of watercolours, drawings and prints at the heart of the show and a to include a sketch Constable made of the Royal Academy’s Tondo by Michelangelo.

The last room talked about the lectures he gave at the Royal Academy to raise the status of landscape painting with some great images such as a wonderful picture of Salisbury Cathedral. There was a lot of rainbows in this room so I’m off to check my notes on the recent Ruben’s landscapes exhibition and talks to see if I’ve noted when Constable saw the famous rainbow landscape.

Closed 13 February 2022


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