John Constable
John Constable (1776-1837), British painter, the son of a miller. He studied at the Royal Academy schools and first exhibited at the Academy in 1802. His works usually depict scenes from the English countryside and reflect the influence of the Dutch 17th-century landscape artists. His most famous paintings include Dedham Vale (1802), Flatford Mill on the River Stour (1817), and The Hay-wain (1821), which received instant acclaim at the Paris Salon. In 1816 Constable finally married Mary Bicknell, whose relatives had opposed the marriage for many years. An inheritance of £20,000 in 1828 enabled Constable to devote himself entirely to landscape painting.
