The Grove, Hampstead

The Grove, Hampstead, painted in 1821 and held at the National Gallery, depicts the wooded area of Hampstead that Constable observed almost daily during his years living in the village. The painting captures the character of the ancient woodland with Constable’s characteristic attention to the specific forms of individual trees, their bark textures, canopy shapes, and the play of light through their leaves. The 1821 date coincides with Constable’s most intensive period of open-air painting on the Heath. The National Gallery’s collection of Constable paintings provides a comprehensive overview of his achievement in English landscape painting.

Constable's handling of dappled light filtering through the canopy of trees is masterly, achieved through touches of bright pigment against deeper greens and browns. The loose, spontaneous brushwork anticipates the plein air techniques of the French Impressionists.

The Grove, Hampstead is in the Tate collection, London. The painting dates from Constable's most productive Hampstead period. The canvas has been cleaned and restored. The dense foliage, painted with vigorous broken strokes, is well-preserved. The thick impasto has been consolidated where necessary. The work demonstrates the richness of subject matter Constable found in his Hampstead surroundings.