CONSTABLE COUNTRY: The Hay Wain by John Constable скачать в хорошем качестве

CONSTABLE COUNTRY: The Hay Wain by John Constable

THE HAY WAIN by John Constable, 1821, Oil on canvas, 51.23 x 72.8 in./130 cm x 185cm THIS PAINTING IS AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE AS A HANDMADE OIL REPRODUCTION FROM 1st ART GALLERY: https://www.1st-art-gallery.com/John-... ABOUT THIS PAINTING: Landscape painting as we know it today, has been around for about two hundred years, a brief time in the longer history of art. Before this, landscapes were a secondary subject, serving as background to religious or mythological paintings, a backdrop for historical works, portraits, etc. Landscapes for their own sake began to appear about the turn of the 19th century. One of the earliest, true landscape artists was British painter, John Constable. Constable was born in rural England, and from all accounts had an idyllic childhood, taking pleasure in the simple, natural beauty of the small towns, churches, pastures, and mills. These were the scenes that, as Constable said, ”made me a painter, and I am grateful.” His way of celebrating his subjects was to be faithful and truthful in their representation. Constable’s best known work is this painting, “The Hay Wain,” which depicts a hay wagon (also called a wain) as it stops mid-stream, perhaps to let the horses cool themselves. To the left is Lott’s Cottage which still stands today. Around the pond we see a dog, a man fishing and a woman apparently drawing water from the stream. There is no embellishment, no idealization, nor great vistas to humble the viewer. Rather it’s a view accessible to any pedestrian. Constable said, “When I sit down to make a sketch from nature, the first thing I try to do is, to forget that I have ever seen a picture.” This fresh, unbiased perspective would certainly resonate with the Impressionists. Today, Constable’s work is seen as the iconic depiction of England’s rural, bucolic settings, what’s often referred to as “Constable Country.” But in his own day he wasn’t that highly regarded. In fact, his work was considered rough and unfinished. However, time has a way of correcting misperceptions. And today he’s considered by many the “father of landscape painting.”