East Bergholt Church
John Constable
1809
Churches, cathedrals, and other sites of contemplation were a recurring theme of Constable’s artistic practice. This lively sketch of the church where he worshiped as a child became the basis for one of his earliest exhibited paintings. The turrets and small dome of St. Mary, East Bergholt, rise above the shops and trees lining Church Street, painted in dabs of color that bustle with energetic brushwork. Here, Constable received the religious education that shaped his worldview and his lifelong loyalty to the Church of England.
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven · Image: Yale Center for British Art, Public domain · Text: Yale Center for British Art, CC0