To mark 200 years of the National Gallery, Boodles have sponsored the 'Constable Haywain Exhibition', open from the 17th October until 2nd February 2025. In celebration of this, Boodles designers have created three one off jewellery masterpieces: two brooches and a pendant, all inspired by the works of John Constable.
Known for his evocative depictions of rural England, Constable’s work captures the beauty and emotion of nature with a unique and unparalleled mastery. Each piece in this limited edition collection pays homage to three of Constable’s most iconic works —The Hay Wain, Weymouth Bay and Stratford Mill - all of which are on display in the exhibition within the gallery.
Boodles Designers carefully selected gemstones to echo the light, colour, and atmosphere of these paintings, employing classical techniques, and choosing a main stone for each design that embodies the essence of the corresponding artwork. These stones were selected not just for their beauty, but for an intrinsic connection to the paintings they represent. Building upon this foundation, an array of complementary gemstones has been arranged like a painter’s palette, with diamonds flowing over the primary stones to add depth and dimension. This collection is not only a celebration of British art and craftsmanship, but also a reflection of Boodles’ sponsorship of a landmark exhibition showcasing Constable’s enduring legacy.
The Weymouth Bay Brooch
It was during his honeymoon in 1816 that Constable painted the work known as Weymouth Bay. He and his new bride, Maria, were staying at the vicarage in Osmington, a small village near Weymouth in Dorset. They enjoyed six weeks there, from mid-October until December, at the invitation of the Reverend John Fisher; a friend of the couple, and the vicar who married them.
In the Weymouth Bay brooch, a striking cabochon-cut lemon ‘chrysoprase’ – a type of variegated agate – echoes the shape of Jordan Hill. Rubies, brown diamonds, brown zircons and green tsavorites mirror the rocks, sand and downs. Above and to the left of those, brilliant white round-cut diamonds suggest the scudding white and grey clouds. And below them, four curved rows incorporating graduated sapphires mimic the play of the waves on the shoreline.
The Hay Wain Brooch
The view in The Hay Wain is of the millpond at Flatford on the River Stour. Flatford Mill was a watermill for grinding corn, operated by the Constable family for nearly a hundred years. It still survives and is about a mile from Constable’s birthplace at East Bergholt, Suffolk.
The Hay Wain brooch features a labradorite, from the moonstone family, set in rose gold to recreate the play of light on the millpond. Right of this stone there is a billow of brilliant cut diamonds, suggesting cloud forms. Cognac diamonds sit at their lower edge, echoing the rushes. Around the labradorite, lines of blue brilliant cut sapphires suggest varying blues of the sky. Its lighter points show in three Ceylon sapphires, which also capture the blue of the millpond above the waggon itself. Beneath those, three sapphire baguettes imply the lines of blue in the water, seen to the left of the horses’ red fringes.
John Constable was born in East Bergholt – a Suffolk village southwest of Ipswich. The neighbouring village of Stratford St Mary lies two miles westward, on the river Stour. And that’s where Stratford Mill used to stand: a paper mill, powered by water. Although the mill itself lends the painting its title, the National Gallery-owned artwork scarcely shows the paper mill at all. It’s half-building seem almost incidental, cropped and largely hidden by shadow.
The real subject of the picture is what attracts and leads the onlooker’s gaze: a marvellously naturalistic, blue and white cloud-strewn sky. Visible not just as an ethereal element, but reflected too on the Stour’s glassy surface. Constable’s skies have made him famous. He obsessed over them, seeking to capture their changes through the medium of paint. He observed to his friend the Reverend John Fisher, “The sky is the source of light in nature and governs everything”. So when designing this suite of jewellery, it was natural Constable’s skies should inspire.
Look to the treetops in the centre of the painting and the horizontal wisps of cloud to their right. Designers drew on this exemplar of Constable’s focus for the new Stratford Mill necklace. Labradorite – the oval stone pendant – captures the blues and purply greys of the heavens. Above and below the main stone, dozens of brilliant cut diamonds, graduating in size, suggest solid dabs and translucent lines of cloud. Around those, five light blue Ceylon sapphires capture the sky in solid form.
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