Treslove portraits by Constable
15
July 2026

A Tale of Vanity Fair: Constable’s Treslove Portraits rediscovered

Welcome to The Arts Society Welwyn Garden
Wednesday, July 15, 2026 - 10:30
The Hawthorne Theatre
Campus West Welwyn Garden City AL8 6AJ
Online Event

This lecture tells the story of the portrait of Emily Treslove, arguably one of Constable's finest.

Until 2019, when it was brought to Sarah Cove for cleaning and restoration, the whereabouts of Constable's sumptuous portrait of his neighbour, Mrs Emily Treslove, was unknown. It had come down through five generations of her family to the present owners, along with a volume of her Diaries and a jewel from the flashy parure of garnet and pearl jewellery shown in the painting and given to her by her husband, Thomas Treslove QC, in 1825.

Following the painting's 'discovery' a companion portrait of Thomas Treslove came to light, also in the family collection. Sarah has not only cleaned, restored and examined the paintings, she has also had privileged access to the key diary volume and the garnet jewel worn in the painting for photography and research. 

This lecture follows the trail of Emily and Thomas's life and career, revealing a tale of excessive wealth, vanity, fashion and politics. It illustrates how the technical study of Constable’s paintings, alongside his letters and the sitter's diaries, widens our understanding of his portrait practice and the frivolity of the nouveau riche in the early 19th century.

Photo credit Sarah Cove

THE ARTS SOCIETY ACCREDITED LECTURER

Ms Sarah Cove

Sarah Cove is an accredited paintings conservator-restorer, technical art historian and lecturer with more than 35 years’ experience working on paintings for the heritage and private sectors. She is based in London and Falmouth and is a specialist in British portraits, 19th-20th century British landscapes and oil sketches on paper and board. In 1986 she founded the Constable Research Project and she is now the leading authority on Constable’s materials and techniques. She has appeared in several TV programmes for the BBC notably Constable in Love with Andrew Graham-Dixon and twice on Fake or Fortune? where she was instrumental in the discovery of 3 ‘lost’ Constables. Other research interests include Tudor and Jacobean Portraiture, the 19th century Newlyn and St Ives schools and early-to-mid 20th century British painting generally. She has been a lecturer for The Arts Society since 2003 and is an experienced international speaker having lectured independently at major public and gallery venues across the UK, USA, Australia and New Zealand. Her presentations are lively and enthusiastic as she speaks without notes with an inimitable passion that comes from presenting her own work and research with wonderful images.