The Hay Wain, 1821
John Constable
Oil on canvas · 130.2 x 185.4 cm
A cart fords a shallow river beneath one of Constable's enormous skies.
Constable's haywain fording a Suffolk stream under a broad English sky is the nation's best-loved landscape. Its freshly observed clouds and dappled light stunned French painters when shown in Paris — quietly revolutionary beneath its gentle, rural calm.
What you're looking at
The wain is empty. It is crossing the ford to go and be loaded, not coming back full, which is the opposite of how the picture is usually described. The cottage on the left belonged to a farmer called Willy Lott and is still standing. Constable's clouds are the radical part — he studied them obsessively and dated the studies, and French painters were startled enough by them in Paris in 1824 to hand him a gold medal.
On a Frame TV
About 1.45:1, so the clean crop takes a trim off the famous sky. The matted file keeps it whole. Green and mid-toned throughout with gentle contrast — an undemanding picture that suits daylight.
National Gallery · Visit it in London →
- 4K master file (3840px+)
- Samsung Frame TV–ready crop
- Phone wallpaper crop
- Printable art card
Public domain · one .zip, no sign-up
More like this
Other works in the collection, starting with John Constable.
