{"product_id":"constable-9781474612920","title":"Constable","description":"\u003cb\u003eBook Synopsis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eONE OF \u003ci\u003eTHE TIMES \u003c\/i\u003eAND \u003ci\u003eSUNDAY TIMES'' \u003c\/i\u003eBEST BOOKS FOR 2022\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e''Eye-opening and full of surprises . . . A treasure'' \u003ci\u003eSunday Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e''\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eA biography as rich with colourful characters as any novel'' \u003ci\u003eTelegraph\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eJohn Constable, the revolutionary nineteenth-century painter of the landscapes and skies of southern England, is Britain''s best-loved but perhaps least understood artist.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHis paintings reflect visions of landscape that shocked and perplexed his contemporaries: attentive to detail, spontaneous in gesture, brave in their use of colour. What we learn from his landscapes is that Constable had sharp local knowledge of Suffolk, a clarity of expression of the skyscapes above Hampstead, an understanding of the human tides in London and Brighton, and a rare ability in his late paintings of Salisbury Cathedral to transform silent suppressed passion into paint.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eYet Constable was also an active and energetic cor\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTrade Review\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA biography as rich with colourful characters as any novel\u003c\/b\u003e . . . As a biographer, Hamilton is \u003cb\u003ea patient, perceptive portraitist, attuned to every swerve in the currents of Constable's life\u003c\/b\u003e . . . Hamilton captures particularly vividly the timbre of relationships and the textures of Constable's day-to-day life, \u003cb\u003emaking you wonder whether \"Constable: A Novel\" might have been a truer title\u003c\/b\u003e . . . On a coach back to London from Suffolk in his 50s, [Constable] drew a fellow passenger's attention to Dedham Vale: \"Is this not beautiful?\" \"Yes Sir,\" came the answer, \"this is Constable's country.\" \"I am John Constable,\" he replied. Unless you're inspired to retrace Hamilton's steps through the hundreds of letters and journal entries on which \u003cb\u003ehe has drawn to such rich, multi-vocal effect, \u003ci\u003eConstable: A Portrait\u003c\/i\u003e will bring you as close as is probably possible to understanding what those four words meant\u003c\/b\u003e * Sunday Telegraph *\u003cbr\u003eThe lively art historian James Hamilton reveals the \"complex, troubled man\" in this biography of the landscape painter John Constable * The Times, Best books coming out in 2022 *\u003cbr\u003eAn \u003cb\u003eeye-opening\u003c\/b\u003e biography . . This life of the celebrated landscape painter is \u003cb\u003efull of surprises \u003c\/b\u003e. . . James Hamilton is rightly  famed for his biographies of  J M W Turner and Thomas  Gainsborough . . . the most  fascinating pages in Hamilton's  book come from his close  scrutiny of Constable's  canvases . . . \u003cb\u003eits magnificent  colour plates lift it on to  another plane\u003c\/b\u003e. They track  Constable's career from the  early portraits to exciting sky  effects like the tempestuous Rainstorm over the Sea,  painted in Brighton. Such  illustrations make \u003ci\u003eConstable:  A Portrait\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cb\u003ea treasure\u003c\/b\u003e -- John Carey * Sunday Times *\u003cbr\u003eOne of the \u003cb\u003emany merits of James Hamilton's estimable biography\u003c\/b\u003e of the painter is to show Constable's long struggle towards acceptance and his insistence, against the evidence, that \"there is room enough for a natural painture\" . . .\u003cb\u003e As the biographer of Gainsborough and Turner, Hamilton is a practised hand when it comes to 18th- and 19th-century British art, and it shows.\u003c\/b\u003e He moves deftly between Constable's personal and professional life and the network of relations and patrons that kept him afloat, and he is just as attuned to the radical aspects of Constable's art. In his pictures, as Hamilton shows, nature does not stand decorously stand still but becomes a pulsating, living entity. -- Michael Prodger * New Statesman *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbsorbing \u003c\/b\u003e. . . [Hamilton has made] judicious  use of Constable's extensive correspondence and other writings, drawing deeply  on these rich resources to bring the artist's  own words into the heart of his book. Hamilton is particularly illuminating on  Constable's early life . .  \u003cb\u003eHamilton  brings this period to life\u003c\/b\u003e . . . Hamilton's young Constable  is avid for intellectual companionship and  conversation about books, painting and  poetry . . . \u003cb\u003eHamilton is an astute judge of his subject's complex character . . . Constable may be a challenging subject, but  Hamilton's deft use of his compelling voice  keeps the narrative moving\u003c\/b\u003e -- Susan Owens * Literary Review *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e[A] major new biography\u003c\/b\u003e . . . Hamilton seeks here to unpick the over-worn view of Constable as the proto-French plein air Impressionist landscapist and furnishes \u003cb\u003ean elegant portrait of the man, and of his times\u003c\/b\u003e . . . The outcome is the first full-scale biography . . . Hamilton deftly depicts a mind that evolves out of the drab discipline of his early portraiture and the continuous copying of old masters . . . Hamilton presents, however, not an intellectual rebel, but a man of staunch political rectitude . . . it boasts the sophisticated highly keyed handling of a variegated interwoven cast of characters. There are 124 in all, and he traces their interactions and interconnectedness. \u003cb\u003eThe story is written in an often racy narrative and is made up of 47 short, dense and well-footnoted chapters, almost filmic in pace.\u003c\/b\u003e * Catholic Herald *\u003cbr\u003eThis \u003cb\u003ebeautiful \u003c\/b\u003ebiography \u003cb\u003ecaptures its subject's enchanting, clever, argumentative personality with considerable grace\u003c\/b\u003e . . . One of this biography's many pleasures is its descriptions of the wide range of people Constable liked or was interested in . . . Hamilton has also written terrific biographies of both Turner and Gainsborough; and in one of the best works of art history of recent years he explained the 19th-century London art market with superb clarity . . . This expertise makes his discussion of Constable's suspicious and tentative engagement with prints of the great landscapes particularly interesting . . . The sense of London society and of the warm humans who populated it, not least Constable's wonderful wife Maria, have an \u003cb\u003ealmost novelistic quality\u003c\/b\u003e. -- Philip Hensher * The Spectator *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWonderfully deft and vivid\u003c\/b\u003e . . . This Constable emerges from his travails as a colourful as well as dogged character, with a piquant turn of phrase * Country Life *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eDelightful, lively and warm-hearted\u003c\/b\u003e . . . To read this book is to be taken to  the best and worst of the early  1800s: the glorious civilisation of it  all, the charm and beauty of 'Constable Country' which he immortalised, the wild cragginess of Hampstead Heath, the gaggles of  rosy-cheeked children; but alongside it the snootiness of the highborn towards the low-born, and the  constant terror of an early death. -- Ysenda Maxtone Graham * Daily Mail *\u003cbr\u003eGives us an account of the man himself in all his complexity, drawing on his vast correspondence and diaries . . . Hamilton writes beautifully and \u003cb\u003ehis style is so engaging that the pace of this mighty work clips along. Highly recommend \u003c\/b\u003e * The Field *\u003cbr\u003eThe Constable of James Hamilton's \u003cb\u003eilluminating \u003c\/b\u003ebiography is a radical, an artist possessed of an \"experimental burn\" to paint the skies and seasons in new lights . . . Hamilton is \u003cb\u003ean assured and insightful guide. He upturns assumptions and encourages you to look with keener eyes\u003c\/b\u003e -- Laura Freeman * The Times *\u003cbr\u003eAnother\u003cb\u003e tour-de-force of historical imagination\u003c\/b\u003e. . . it is \u003cb\u003eone of the many delights of Hamilton's\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cb\u003ebook\u003c\/b\u003e that we enter the encircling group of encouragers who supported him -- Lucy Lethbridge * The Oldie *\u003cbr\u003eIn this\u003cb\u003e illuminating and insightful\u003c\/b\u003e biography, James Hamilton suggests that we have got Constable all wrong . . . \u003cb\u003edelightful and warm-hearted\u003c\/b\u003e * The Week *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA big, immersive read, as gripping as any fiction\u003c\/b\u003e * Saga *\u003cbr\u003eHamilton draws a pin-sharp picture of the person as well as the artist . . . \u003cb\u003eIf you wish to understand more about East Bergholt's most famous son, Hamilton's tome is a must read\u003c\/b\u003e * National Trust, Flatford News *\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Orion Publishing Co","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48739609346391,"sku":"9781474612920","price":11.69,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"url":"https:\/\/bookcurl.com\/products\/constable-9781474612920","provider":"Book Curl","version":"1.0","type":"link"}