Cloud Study c. 1821

John Constable made this cloud study with oil paint on paper in England during the early 19th century. Constable devoted himself to the close observation of nature at a time when many artists were still expected to prioritize classical and historical subjects. Constable’s decision to focus on something as fleeting and ordinary as the sky reflects a broader shift in cultural values. The late 18th and early 19th centuries saw a growing interest in empirical observation and scientific categorization. Think of the rise of natural history museums and botanical gardens. At the same time, the Industrial Revolution was transforming the English countryside, leading some artists and writers to celebrate the beauty and tranquility of the natural world, as a form of social critique. Constable’s cloud studies are not simply objective records of atmospheric conditions. They are also expressions of personal feeling and responses to an environment undergoing profound social and economic change. To understand this fully, we have to look at the art market at the time, and the writings of his contemporaries, to understand the cultural significance of something as simple as a cloud.