How 19 Contemporary Artists Paid Tribute to John Constable

"The original production of For John Constable followed on the heels of another major print portfolio commissioned by Jacobson, 14 Big Prints (1972), that saw leading artists from Ed Ruscha to Peter Blake contribute to the project. The inspirational starting point was, as the portfolio title indicates, the English landscape painter John Constable (1776-1837), whom Jacobson favored over the more popular J. M. W. Turner, as the dealer noted in a text written alongside the present exhibition. Unlike previous print projects, For John Constable marked a more cohesive, purposeful approach, with Jacobson recalling, "By now I was in my early thirties, so I was probably becoming more the 'editeur' than simply a publisher. I had begun to become more thoughtful, and the future projects were now more planned and much more highly thought through.""

"Contributing to the dynamic, multifaceted nature of For John Constable, Jacobson, who did not operate as a printer nor a press, resulted in prints being made by each individual artist's own preference and capacity. However the artist wanted to produce their contribution, it was their choice to make. The cohesion of the portfolio, however, bears the unmistakable mark of Jacobson, as he wrote: Stylistically and in format, as well as in printing techniques, it had no boundaries. The only one I now realize in hindsight, putting it into perspective, was my personal passion for Constable. Actually, looking back on it, many of the"

Bernard Jacobson published For John Constable in 1976 as a portfolio of prints by 19 contemporary artists timed to John Constable's bicentenary. Contributors included David Hockney, Patrick Caulfield, Alexander Hollweg, William Tillyer, and others. The project followed Jacobson's 1972 portfolio 14 Big Prints and represented a more cohesive, intentionally planned editorial approach. Jacobson did not operate a press; each artist chose their preferred printing methods and production process. The portfolio's unity derived from stylistic openness across techniques and Jacobson's personal passion for Constable, which informed the project's direction and selection.

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