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Butter burr in flower (formerly 'Plant study')

Maker

(artist)
1776-1837

Title

Date of Production

1825

Medium

pen and brown ink on the verso of a printed invitation on wove paper

Dimensions

Height: 19.3 cm
Width: 11.8 cm

Accession Number

D.1952.RW.3944

Mode of Acquisition

Robert Clermont Witt, bequest, 1952

Credit

The Courtauld, London (Samuel Courtauld Trust)

Copyright

Work in the public domain

Location

Not currently on display

Keywords

Notes

From Reynolds 1984: the invitation is directed to Henry Phillips, the botanist. He must have passed it to Constable, who was in Brighton at the end of September 1825, returning by the 30th. This drawing may have been made on the next flowering of the plant in April 1826. Phillips advised Constable on the wildflowers depicted in The Cornfield. In the same album was another drawing of a butter burr, dated 2 January 1826. Its present whereabouts are unknown.

Provenance

Charles Bostock; his sale, Sotheby's, London, 26 June 1946, lot 71 (part of an album) [according to Reynolds 1984]; Thomas Agnew & Sons (London); purchased there by Sir Robert Witt, London (1872-1952), n.d.; Witt Bequest 1952

Exhibition History

Constable and Brighton, Brighton Museum & Art Gallery, Brighton, 08/04/2017-08/10/2017

Literature

Lancaster, Shan (ed.), Constable and Brighton - 'something out of nothing', Scala Arts & Heritage Publishers Ltd - London 2017
pp. 75-76
ill. on p. 75

Reynolds, Graham, The later paintings and drawings of John Constable, New Haven: Yale University Press 1984
no. 26.7 on p. 170
pl. 615

Blunt, Anthony, Hand-list of the drawings in the Witt Collection, London, 1956
p. 13

Inscriptions

none.

Inscription: Recto: lower centre, brown ink, artist's hand: "Butter Burr - in flower / Growes in marshplaces. flowers in April / leaves - succeed / [illegible]] winter.". Verso: centre, printed (2nd line written in brown ink): "Dr. MARTIN / respectfully solicits the honour of / Mr. Phillips + friends / attendance at his Introductory Lecture on the Phi / losophical Writings of Lord Bacon, to be delivered / at the Old Ship Tavern, on Wednesday next, the / 28th inst. at One o'clock precisely. / 2, St. George's Place, Brighton, / September 22, 1825."; lower right, graphite: "5/- / 1001".

Collector's mark: none.

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