National Gallery of Australia | Audio Tour | Constable

This watercolour and The Castle Rock, Borrowdale 1806 (cat. 3) are examples of Constable’s work during his only visit to the Lake District from 1 September to 19 October 1806 – encouraged and supported by his maternal uncle, David Pike Watts. Constable drew and painted around Kendal, Brathay, Skelwith, Thirlmere, Windermere, and spent at least three weeks in the Borrowdale area. He made almost one hundred drawings and watercolours during this sketching trip, working on the spot, and showing for the first time his interest in atmospheric phenomena, noting on the back of a number of his works the time of day and observations on the weather, a practice he continued throughout his life. He captured the way the terrain altered in appearance with the changeable weather and light conditions. In this view of Lake Windermere Constable painted freely in a restricted palette, overlaying washes of colour, using very little pencil outlining, to capture the moisture laden atmosphere of the scene. He depicted a natural