Where can you see John Constable in London?

At the National Gallery: The Hay Wain. At the Victoria and Albert Museum: Full-scale study for The Hay Wain. At the Tate Britain: Salisbury Cathedral from the Meadows. Museums move and lend their works, so check before a special journey.

What is John Constable's most famous work in London?

The Hay Wain, of 1821, at the National Gallery. A cart stands in the shallows of the River Stour beside a white cottage at noon, under a sky of piled cloud. The cottage is still there, and so is the view.

When and where was John Constable born?

On 11 June 1776, at East Bergholt, Suffolk. John Constable died on 31 March 1837, at London, aged about 61.

What is John Constable known for?

The Hay Wain was shown in Paris in 1824 and won a gold medal. The V&A holds the gift his daughter made of the contents of his studio. Painted the sky on the spot, and noted the hour and the wind on the back. John Constable was an English painter, of Romanticism.

Painter, 1776 to 1837

John Constable

Constable painted a few square miles of the Suffolk valley where his father owned mills, and said they had made him a painter. The Hay Wain won a gold medal in Paris before anyone in London would buy it.

Born: 1776, East Bergholt, Suffolk
Died: 1837, London
Movement: Romanticism
In London: 3 works in 3 museums

Where to see John Constable in London

Each work with the museum it hangs in. Museums move and lend their works, so check before a special journey.

The National Gallery1 work

The Hay Wain
1821
A cart stands in the shallows of the River Stour beside a white cottage at noon, under a sky of piled cloud. The cottage is still there, and so is the view.

Victoria and Albert Museum1 work

Full-scale study for The Hay Wain
about 1821
The same scene at the same size, painted first, with the brush and the palette knife and no finish at all. It hangs with the sketch for The Leaping Horse.

Tate Britain1 work

Salisbury Cathedral from the Meadows
1831
The spire under a storm that is just breaking, with a rainbow arching over it and a cart fording the river in front. He painted it after his wife died and thought it his greatest work.

The life of John Constable

He came late to success. He was not elected a full member of the Royal Academy until he was fifty-two, and he never went abroad. In France, Delacroix repainted part of a picture after seeing his.

For each of his big exhibition canvases he first painted a sketch of the same size, loose and rough, to work out the light. His daughter gave two of them to the V&A, and many now prefer them to the finished pictures.

What to know

The Hay Wain was shown in Paris in 1824 and won a gold medal
The V&A holds the gift his daughter made of the contents of his studio
Painted the sky on the spot, and noted the hour and the wind on the back

Born: 11 June 1776, East Bergholt, Suffolk
Died: 31 March 1837, London

John Constable: common questions

Where can you see John Constable in London?: At the National Gallery: The Hay Wain. At the Victoria and Albert Museum: Full-scale study for The Hay Wain. At the Tate Britain: Salisbury Cathedral from the Meadows. Museums move and lend their works, so check before a special journey.
What is John Constable's most famous work in London?: The Hay Wain, of 1821, at the National Gallery. A cart stands in the shallows of the River Stour beside a white cottage at noon, under a sky of piled cloud. The cottage is still there, and so is the view.
When and where was John Constable born?: On 11 June 1776, at East Bergholt, Suffolk. John Constable died on 31 March 1837, at London, aged about 61.
What is John Constable known for?: The Hay Wain was shown in Paris in 1824 and won a gold medal. The V&A holds the gift his daughter made of the contents of his studio. Painted the sky on the spot, and noted the hour and the wind on the back. John Constable was an English painter, of Romanticism.