John Constable, R.A. 1776-1837

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Description

John Constable, R.A.
A distant View of Stonehenge, Wiltshire
dated l.l.: July 1820 and again on verso, with a collector's mark verso and another on part of the former mount
pencil, with Constable's own fixative (slightly discoloured over time except for the small area in the lower right corner where his thumb held the sheet and prevented the even application of the fixative), unframed

Provenance

Isabel Constable;
Sir Robert and Lady Witt;
Sir John and Lady Witt, their executors sale at Sotheby's, 19th February 1987, lot 114

Literature

Graham Reynolds, The Later Paintings and Drawings of John Constable, 1984, p.50, no.20.19 (wrong dimensions);
Burlington Magazine, review by Leslie Parris and Ian Fleming-Williams, 'The Later Paintings and Drawings of John Constable', 1985, p.167

Catalogue Note

This drawing dates from 15th July 1820, Constable's only recorded visit to Stonehenge made during a protracted stay with the Fishers at Leadenhall. It shows the view from a road junction about a quarter mile east of Stonehenge.

Constable executed a similar drawing of this view which is of the same size as the present work and dated in the same way (see Graham Reynolds, The Later Paintings and Drawings of John Constable, 1984, p.50, no.20.18). Leslie Parris and Ian Fleming-Williams in their Burlington Magazine review of the 1984 Later Paintings and Drawings refer to the present work as follows: 'This drawing (correct measurements 10.9 by 18 cm.) made a favourable impression when seen recently and seemed unlike a repetition of 20.18'

Constable also executed a closer view of similar size on the same day which later formed the basis for his dramatic late watercolour of Stonehenge of 1835; both sketch and watercolour are now in the Victoria and Albert Museum. Constable executed another study, possibly in oil, which resulted in a mezzotint by David Lucas, published in 1845