Turner and Constable Review – An excellent study of two great rivals in English painting | film

TThe actual exhibition remains at Tate Britain until mid-April, and of course no one would be so heretical as to suggest not seeing these stunning works of art in person. But if you don’t live in London and/or don’t want to wander with crowded audiences, this excellent cinematic treatment is a rewarding experience – if only for the glowing close-ups, interesting and erudite commentary from the curators and a complete lack of elbows in the ribs or backs of other people’s heads.

The filmmakers behind the on-screen exhibition, of which this forms a part, are past masters at creating elegant, watchable counterparts to the gallery-going experience, and this giant display of two masters of early 19th-century British art is no exception. The show presents itself as outlining a (mostly) friendly rivalry between two painters born 14 months apart (Turner, slightly older, in 1775, and Constable in 1776), and both the show and film deftly walk us through what they have in common and where they diverge.

The film’s main weapons – as is often the case – are access to the curatorial team behind the exhibition; In this case, a seriously impressive dual work by Amy Concannon (Senior Curator of Historic British Art) and Nicola Morby (Curator of British Art 1790-1850), both of whom articulate their causes and aims with admirable clarity. Aside from the influential artistic issues, it is interesting to hear how the Napoleonic Wars shut down Europe – specifically the Grand Tour of the 18th century – meaning that British painters turned inward and domestic for inspiration, a trend which undoubtedly helped stimulate the Romantic movement more generally.

Concannon and Moorby are ably supported by the energetic Lachlan Goudie. I’m usually a bit agnostic about using contemporary artists to discuss big names, as it always makes them seem like a featherweight by comparison, but Judy’s enthusiastic assessment of the kind of technology available to both painters, and its consequential impact on their working habits, is key to understanding them. As a film, this may not be uprooting any trees that haven’t been uprooted before, through a seamless deployment of tried and trusted techniques, but it does make the English countryside look beautiful and, by effectively channeling great exposition, creates a properly enjoyable viewing experience.