John Constable / 约翰·康斯特布尔

John Constable is one of England’s most famous painters. Almost all British people will know his name and be able to recognise some of his paintings. Many of his painting are still on display in art galleries in London.

约翰·康斯特布尔是英格兰最著名的画家之一。几乎所有英国人都会知道他的名字，并能认出他的一些画作。他的许多画作仍在伦敦的美术馆展出。

John Constable was born in the county of Suffolk, in the east of England, in 1776. Initially, he worked in the flourishing family business, trading and transporting coal and corn. John started drawing and painting because this was considered an appropriate pursuit for a rich gentleman. He clearly showed talent from the beginning and was taught and encouraged by friends and other local artists.

约翰·康斯特布尔于1776年出生在英格兰东部的萨福克郡。最初，他在兴旺的家族企业工作，进行煤炭和玉米的贸易与运输。翰开始绘画是因为这被认为是富有绅士的合适消遣。他从一开始就显露出才华，并且受到朋友和其他当地艺术家的教导和鼓励。

Despite the misgivings of his family, John decided he wanted to be a professional painter. To further his knowledge and skills, he enrolled in the Royal Academy Schools, a prestigious art school in London. By 1803, he was exhibiting his work at the Royal Academy, an honour that was only allowed to a select few artists.

尽管家人有顾虑，约翰决定他想成为一名职业画家。为了提升自己的知识和技能，他报名参加了伦敦的皇家学院学校，这是一所享有声望的艺术学校。到1803年，他在皇家学院展出了自己的作品，这是只有少数艺术家才能获得的荣誉。

At this time he also married his wife, Maria Bicknell, despite the objections of her father. He believed that the life of a painter would not bring in a stable income for John’s family.

这时他也娶了妻子玛丽亚·比克内尔，尽管遭到了她父亲的反对。他认为画家的生活不能为约翰的家庭带来稳定的收入。

John started to specialise in painting landscapes. He was also a member of the ‘Romantic’ movement which promoted emotion, nature, heroism and mythology over realism and industrialisation. John Constable said “Painting is just another word for feeling”. His paintings often displayed imaginary rural idylls where small figures and animals take your eye around the canvas.

约翰开始专攻风景画。他还是‘浪漫主义’运动的成员，该运动提倡情感、自然、英雄主义和神话，而不是现实主义和工业化。约翰·康斯特布尔说：“绘画只是感情的另一种表达方式”。他的画作常常展示虚构的田园风光，小人物和动物引导观者的目光游走于画布之上。

Despite John’s talent, he did not make a lot of money. Paintings of landscapes were not popular at this time. Although, he was offered the job of drawing master at Great Marlow Military College (now called Sandhurst), he refused the offer to concentrate on his painting projects. He did however gain an income from painting pictures of rich people’s houses. He also painted portraits. Despite creating many fine portraits during this time, he found the work dull and boring. John would much rather be in his studio or in the countryside painting landscapes.

尽管约翰有才华，他的收入却不高。那个时期风景画并不流行。虽然他被邀请到大马洛军事学院（现在称为桑德赫斯特）担任画画导师，但是他拒绝了这个机会，以为专注于自己的画作项目。然而，他通过为富人绘制房屋画获得了一定收入。他也画肖像画。尽管在这段时间创作了许多精美的肖像画，他仍觉得那工作枯燥无味。约翰更愿意待在画室或乡间画风景画。

When John Constable’s parents died, he gained a small share of the family business but it was not until 1818 that John sold his first important work. The painting entitled ‘The White Horse’ was sold to a friend for 100 guineas, a substantial sum at that time. This sale gave him the financial freedom he needed to continue his artistic career.

当约翰·康斯特布尔的父母去世时，他继承了家族企业的一小部分股份，但直到1818年，约翰才卖出了他的第一幅重要作品。这幅名为《白马》的画作以100金币的价格卖给了一位朋友，在当时这是一笔可观的数目。这笔销售让他获得了继续艺术生涯所需的经济自由。

The success of this painting also triggered his election to be an Associate of the Royal Academy. He then painted some of some of his most famous works such as ‘The Hay Wain’ and ‘Stratford Mill’. Some of these painting were up to 2m wide. His painting were greatly admired by artists from all over Europe. Despite the critical acclaim for his paintings, he still had difficulty selling them. Sales were very erratic and sometime he had to depend on friends to help him out financially. During his lifetime, John Constable only sold 20 paintings in England but sold more than 20 in France in just a few years.

这幅画的成功还促使他当选为皇家艺术学院的准会员。随后，他创作了一些最著名的作品，如《干草车》和《斯特拉特福德磨坊》。这些作品中有些宽达两米。他的画作深受来自全欧洲的艺术家们的赞赏。尽管他的画作赢得了评论界的高度评价，他在销售方面仍然困难重重。销售情况非常不稳定，有时他不得不依靠朋友在经济上帮助他。在他的一生中，约翰·康斯特布尔在英格兰只售出了二十幅画作，但在短短几年内在法国售出了二十多幅。

Although John was pleased with his artistic success, his happiness was destroyed when his wife contracted tuberculosis. He continued to paint but his newly-acquired quarrelsome manner affected his sales of paintings. When his wife finally died, he was grief stricken and only wore black for the rest of his life. The loss of his wife also affected his painting. The serenity that was present in his previous works was replaced with a feeling of turmoil and distress.

虽然约翰对自己的艺术成就感到满意，但当他的妻子感染结核病时，他的快乐被毁了。他继续作画，但他新获得的好争吵的性格影响了画作的销售。当他的妻子最终去世时，他悲痛欲绝，此后终生只穿黑色。他妻子的去世也影响了他的绘画，之前作品中的宁静被动荡和痛苦的情绪取代。

John Constable was elected a full Member of the Royal Academy in 1829, possibly the greatest honour that can be given to an artist in the U.K. by their peers. As well as displaying his painting, he also gave lectures on the theory and history of art at various institutions in London.

约翰·康斯特布尔于1829年当选为皇家艺术学院的正式会员，这可能是英国同行能给予艺术家的最高荣誉。除了展示他的画作，他还在伦敦的各个机构讲授艺术理论和历史。

John Constable died on 31st March 1837 due to heart failure. When friends checked his studio they found it full of unsold paintings. John was buried alongside his wife, Maria, in a graveyard in Hampstead, London. John and his wife had 7 children, some of which also learned to paint. They too are buried with their father and mother in Hampstead.

约翰·康斯特布尔于1837年3月31日因为心力衰竭去世。当朋友们查看他的工作室时，发现里面满是未售出的画作。约翰与妻子玛丽亚一起安葬在伦敦汉普斯特德的一个公墓中。约翰和妻子共有七个孩子，其中一些也学会了绘画。他们也与父母一同葬于汉普斯特德。