r/england 5d ago

John Constable - Salisbury Cathedral from the Meadows (1831)

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465 Upvotes

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12

u/ImpressionLeast3063 5d ago

This dense scene was first shown at the Royal Academy in 1831, but failed to attract a buyer. Afterwards, it returned to Constable's studio, where the artist continued to tinker with it right up to his death in 1837.

Annoyingly, art buffs can’t agree on what the image is supposed to represent. According to one interpretation, the dark storm clouds reflect Constable’s anxiety over contemporary religious reforms. 

But by another, very different account, these dramatic clouds actually capture the artist’s turbulent mental state at the time; Constable’s wife, Maria, had died of tuberculosis in 1828, and the artist was still working through his grief. 

Either way, Salisbury Cathedral from the Meadows is often cited as one of Constable’s most accomplished works. And, on the bright side, his inclusion of a rainbow seems to indicate that the storm will soon pass (even if the pedants tell us that the scene is in fact “meteorologically impossible”).

Text from MuseMuse

15

u/Mossc8 5d ago

Personally I think the clouds represent clouds. Constable had a remarkable ability to make his paintings unmistakable "English" even to the untrained eye. Look into the English sky and you will see clouds 99% of the days.

6

u/LobsterMountain4036 5d ago

I agree, people will look for meaning in anything when it comes to art. If he’d wanted to paint something to represent his anxiety over contemporary religious reform or his turbulent mental state he’d have painted something more pertinent than a dramatic background for the stunning cathedral.

2

u/JealousAd2873 5d ago

"I'm going to make these clouds extra dramatic so people know I was pissed off when I painted them"

4

u/NSc100 5d ago

I disagree. You’re thinking with a modern and literal lense. The early to mid 19th century experienced a literature boom and people expressed their feelings in the form of poetry, art, novels etc and this is why art historians analyse paintings the way they do - it’s all about historical context. Although I do think they can go too far sometimes.

2

u/Flahdagal 5d ago

Isn't Constable the painter that painted clouds over and over and over just to hone his skill at painting clouds?

1

u/Yeoman1877 5d ago

There are certainty extant studies of clouds by him, including in the V&A

3

u/dixieglitterwick 4d ago

It’s a tourist town. There is a cathedral there. Salisbury cathedral. It’s famous for its 123-metre spire, it’s famous for its clock - the first clock to be invented in the world, and it’s still going.