“When I sit down to make a sketch from nature, the first thing I try to do is to forget that I have ever seen a picture.”

— John Constable

As quoted in Richard Friedenthal, Letters of the great artists – from Blake to Pollock (Thames and Hudson, London, 1963), p. 40
1800s - 1810s

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John Constable 53

English Romantic painter 1776–1837

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translation from the original Dutch, Fons Heijnsbroek
version in original Dutch (citaat van Breitner's brief, in het Nederlands:) Het is niet mogelijk dergelijke dingen te maken zonder hulp van photos. Hoe wil je dat ik een Amsterdamsche straat maak. Ik maak krabbeltjes in mijn schetsboek. als het kan een studie uit een raam. en een schets voor de details maar de keus. De compositie is toch van mij.
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“When I sit down to make a sketch from nature, the first thing I try to do is to forget that I have ever seen a picture.”

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John Constable 53

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