Although few of his finished paintings survive, he was a major influence on John Constable and others, and some of his techniques were not exploited until the 20th century.
Constable
Among his last paintings are six superb landscapes, painted for his pleasure. What a wonderful end to such an illustrious career.
His sketches and studies are wonderfully painterly, but was he painting what he saw, or what he envisaged?
A landscape without human or animal figures often looks eery or unnatural. This new series looks at how figures are used in landscape paintings, with copious examples.
An independent pioneer of ‘social realism’, his densely-populated landscapes showed real people struggling to live in the north French countryside.
He demonstrated that you can paint from your mind’s eye, however unusual your mind may be. A major influence of William Blake.
Were Pre-Raphaelite landscape paintings just a brief and unimportant, passing phase, or did they have significant influence?
The pursuit of truth was not easy, and posed its own problems, which altered the look of paintings.
His second vast canvas almost brings him to financial and artistic failure, but he recovers.
Full membership of the Royal Academy, a gigantic landscape of the sublime, and several important commissions: the peak of his career.
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