drawing;
sketch-book
- Museum number
- 1888,0215.47
- Description
-
Folkestone harbour, drawing formerly in a sketchbook; fishermen with nets on a bank of sand, in the foreground a boat with sail on the bank, others further on, a harbour wall beyond. 1833
Pen and grey ink, with watercolour
- Production date
- 1833
- Dimensions
-
Height: 127 millimetres
-
Width: 210 millimetres
- $Inscriptions
-
- Curator's comments
- During nearly two weeks that he spent in Folkestone in October 1833, Constable made at least thirteen drawings and watercolours in a sketchbook of Whatman paper, watermarked 1828. Three of these were made within the harbour walls, but this is the only one looking out to sea; the other two, in the Victoria & Albert Museum and The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge both study the view looking up to the town from the harbour below (R33.21 and R33.27). The fishing vessel with one sail up looks as if it may about to put out to sea in the fresh breeze evident from the flag on the end of the harbour wall. On the distant horizon, a succession of tiny vessels can be seen, part of the constant activity which must have delighted Constable about this visit to the channel port, and reminded him of his time drawing shipping on the Thames in 1803.
For other views of Folkestone from the same sketch-book, see 1888-2-15-37 and 46 and 1910-2-12-230 and 231. For the background to Constable's visits to Folkestone, see 1888-2-15-46.
I. Fleming-Williams, 'Constable landscape watercolours and drawings', 1976, pl. 46.
- Location
- Not on display
- Acquisition date
- 1888
- Department
- Prints and Drawings
- Registration number
- 1888,0215.47