Artwork
EAST BERGHOLT, SUFFOLK
EAST BERGHOLT, SUFFOLK is a print by the Romanticist artist John Constable. It dates from 1831 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. This mezzotint belongs to the ambitious English Landscape series, a collection of 22 prints issued between 1830 and 1832.
About this work
Overview
This mezzotint belongs to the ambitious English Landscape series, a collection of 22 prints issued between 1830 and 1832. The series was conceived by John Constable near the end of his life and was intended to reproduce a selection of his oil sketches, finished paintings, and a few watercolours and drawings in the mezzotint medium.
Subject & Meaning
Constable chose scenes that held personal and historical resonance, aiming to foster a broader appreciation of England’s countryside. The prints emphasize the interplay of light and shadow, illustrating his belief that chiaroscuro is a fundamental principle governing natural scenery.
Technique & Style
The mezzotints were executed by David Lucas, a relatively unknown engraver trained under Samuel Reynolds. Lucas employed the mezzotint process to translate Constable’s atmospheric effects, drawing on the landscape traditions of Claude Lorrain and J.M.W. Turner while preserving the painter’s tonal subtleties.
History & Provenance
The first edition of the series appeared in six parts from June 1830 to July 1832. Constable revised the collection in 1833, producing a second edition. After his death in 1837, additional reprints were issued, unfinished plates were completed, and Lucas later created and published new plates under the series’ title.
Legacy
English Landscape stands as one of the most significant mezzotint series ever published, reflecting Constable’s late‑career effort to codify his artistic principles and to promote the aesthetic value of the English landscape for future generations.
Artist & collection
Artist
John Constable (; 11 June 1776 – 31 March 1837) was an English landscape painter in the Romantic tradition.
