JOHN CONSTABLE RA (EAST BERGHOLT 1776 – 1837 HAMPSTEAD) – Sketch – Cottage in the Wood (1832)
This sketch by John Constable is the leading lot at Sheppards Irish and international art sale in Durrow on June 10. It is one of only five known examples painted on envelop by the artist. The oil on paper is painted en plein air with the pinhole for pinning to the paintbox still visible. According to art historian Dr Peter Murray: ‘the scene is most likely Dedham Vale’ and the cottage ‘May well be Willy Lott’s Cottage on the banks of the Stour, near Flatford Mill’. This is the cottage that features in Constable’s most famous work The Hay Wain. The estimate is €30,000-50,000.