The two remaining towers of Hadleigh Castle, in the English county of Essex, overlook the Thames Estuary. John Constable first sketched the site in 1814, writing to his wife Maria of its “melancholy grandeur,” but did return to the subject until fourteen years later. Noting Constable’s “determined avoidance of heroic elements of the picturesque” and “affectionate embrace of the seemingly commonplace features of rural life,” Angus Trumble of the Yale Center for British Art proposes that Constable “…may have been prompted toward the unusually dramatic subject, with its hints at decay and regeneration, by the death from tuberculosis of his beloved wife in November 1828, but it seems that his election, at long last, in February 1829 to full membership of the Royal Academy may also have led Constable to consider the advantages of exhibiting a subject more conventionally picturesque and heroic than might otherwise have attracted him.”
The effect of man made fortifications succumbing to nature, which Constable achieves in Hadleigh Castle, owes much to the meteorological observations that he began on moving to Hampstead in the early 1820s. Informed by Luke Howard’s pioneering work on the classification of clouds, Constable made numerous oil sketches of the sky, working directly from nature in open air. In an era when landscape painters relied upon pictorial references, even adjusting their palettes to emulate the patina of aged oil paintings, it was Constable’s commitment to the truth of nature that made his work revolutionary for its time.
Product Information
Expect crisp detail and vivid color from our giclée process fine art prints. We use archival pigment inks on cotton fiber paper to achieve a wide color gamut, deep blacks and beautiful tonal transitions. Unlike posters, they will not fade or yellow, but maintain their original quality for as long as you own them.
How to Frame
Historical artworks were produced in whatever shapes and sizes best suited the artists and their patrons, and these rarely correspond to the proportions of modern, mass-produced frames. Most reproductions sold on the web are cropped to an arbitrary standard, compromising the integrity of the original artwork. We solve this by using accent borders to make up any differences in proportion.Framing may be as simple as inserting the print into a standard size frame with the borders showing. In many cases, our customers choose to have them matted. Borders allow space for framers to mount the print while covering little, if any, of the artwork. Our images are sized to provide desirable mat widths in common frames.Sizes 9” x 12”, 12” x 16”, and 16” x 20” are designed to be matted in larger frames, such as 11” x 14”, 16” x 20” and 20” x 24”, respectively. Larger prints may be matted in frames of equal size, the borders corresponding to the shape of the mat. Where the artwork is unusually square or narrow, other sizes may be preferred.If our sizing does not meet your requirements, we provide customization free of charge. Please contact us to discuss the details.
Shipping and Returns
All orders ship within one business day. The following services are available at checkout:
United States
Shipping Class |
Price |
Estimated Delivery Window |
USPS First Class Parcel |
Free |
3 – 5 business days |
USPS Priority Mail |
$3.99 |
2 – 4 business days |
USPS Priority Mail Express |
$29.99 |
1 – 3 days, guaranteed |
Canada *
Shipping Class |
Price |
Estimated Delivery Window |
USPS First Class International |
$11.99 |
1 – 3 weeks |
USPS Priority Mail Express |
$56.99 |
3 – 5 business days |
International, Excluding Canada *
Shipping Class |
Price |
Estimated Delivery Window |
USPS First Class International |
$17.99 |
1 – 4 weeks |
USPS Priority Mail Express |
$62.99 |
3 – 5 business days |
* International orders may be subject to import taxes at time of delivery.
Returns Policy
If you are unhappy with your order for any reason, you are welcome to return it within 60 days for a full refund. Please contact us and return your item(s) to:
The Ibis
809 Grant Street
Endicott, NY 13760
Your return will be processed on receipt.