Trees in a Meadow c. 1805

John Constable created "Trees in a Meadow" with watercolor on paper. These are traditional art materials, but what's interesting is how Constable uses them. Notice the fluidity, the way he captures light and atmosphere, and the lack of precise detail. He wasn't aiming for a photographic record, but rather to convey a feeling, an experience of being in nature. The loose brushwork and transparency of watercolor allow him to capture the fleeting effects of light on leaves and grass. This reflects a shift in artistic sensibility, away from formal, academic landscapes towards a more direct and personal engagement with the environment. Constable was part of a generation that saw nature as a source of inspiration and spiritual renewal, and that attitude elevated the status of landscape painting, and, more broadly, that of direct experience. It's a romantic vision that, even today, shapes our understanding of the relationship between humans and the natural world.