{"id":8637,"date":"2025-11-30T13:54:13","date_gmt":"2025-11-30T13:54:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.lanawooster.co.uk\/?p=8637"},"modified":"2025-11-30T13:59:03","modified_gmt":"2025-11-30T13:59:03","slug":"aspects-for-the-week-beginning-30-november-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.lanawooster.co.uk\/?p=8637","title":{"rendered":"Aspects for the week beginning 30 November 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Rivals Exhibition, Tate Britain<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The new exhibition highlights the rivalry and contrasting personalities of contemporary artists Joseph Mallord William Turner and John Constable, who lived in the 18th<\/sup> and 19th<\/sup> Century.<\/p>\n

J.M.W. Turner (1775 \u2013 1851)<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

“He was a genius of the first order\u2014far the greatest painter that England has ever produced…”<\/em><\/p>\n

~ Kenneth Clark, Art historian<\/p>\n

Birth Chart<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Turner had the Sun in Taurus, a classic sign for Fine Art.\u00a0 There is more than a trace of the Warrior Archetype in his chart, with the Sun trine Mars, and the North Node conjunct Mars.\u00a0 The Sun is also closely trine the North Node, indicating the Creator Archetype.\u00a0 He had the Moon exactly sextile Mercury \u2013 a harmonious alliance between the imagination and the intellect.\u00a0 Mercury was loosely conjunct Chiron \u2013 showing a problem-solving mind.\u00a0 With Venus conjunct Uranus, he had an unusual relationship with society, and unique artforms, and his personality was described as eccentric. Venus square to the Nodal Axis suggests karma with the art world, which may include that with John Constable.\u00a0 With Venus loosely conjunct the I.C. in Taurus in 5th<\/sup> House, Art was the Foundation of his life and creativity.\u00a0 Mars square Jupiter gave him over-the-top energy and productivity.\u00a0 Mars square Uranus conferred an electrical quality to his energy. The square of Mars to the Midheaven may indicate \u201crivalry\u201d with another male painter.\u00a0 Jupiter loosely conjunct Uranus equates with the Entrepreneur Archetype, and Jupiter trine Neptune, mystical atmospheres in his work.\u00a0 Saturn trine Pluto (The Strategist Archetype), part of a Grand Trine, helped in organizing his compositions.\u00a0 With Uranus at 0 degrees Gemini, he was bringing into being a new genre.\u00a0 Uranus was exactly square the Nodal Axis, suggesting some alienation from society, and being destined to bring in something new.\u00a0 He was an inspiration for the Impressionist movement.<\/p>\n

Life and Career<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Turner was born in Maiden Lane, Covent Garden, and was regarded as a child prodigy.\u00a0 He studied at the Royal Academy of Arts from the age of 14, and opened his own gallery at the age of 29, around the age of his Saturn Return.\u00a0 In his life, he travelled a great deal, both in the U.K. and Europe, always with a sketchbook in hand (leaving a substantial number as a legacy). His work was championed by art critic John Ruskin.\u00a0 He was very close to his father, and grew morose after his father died in 1828.\u00a0 We know that he had two relationships, one with a widowed housekeeper Sarah Danby, and another with widow Sophia Caroline Booth.\u00a0 Sarah Danby had two daughters, of whom he is believed to be the father.<\/p>\n

Style<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Though he began his life as a painter copying the prevailing Romantic and Realist trends, in his later years he developed a unique way of depicting light, for example in \u201cRain, Steam and Speed \u2013 The Great Western Railway\u201d (1844), a style we know and love.\u00a0 He was a great influence on Monet and other Impressionists, in moving away from Realism.<\/p>\n

He was memorably portrayed by the actor Timothy Spall in Mike Leigh\u2019s film of 2014.<\/p>\n

John Constable (1776 \u2013 1837)<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

(his art) \u201cis to be found under every hedge, and in every land, and therefore nobody thinks it worth picking up\u201d.<\/em><\/p>\n

~ John Constable<\/p>\n

Birth Chart<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

John Constable\u2019s Sun was in the neighbouring sign of Gemini, but there is no overlap between their Sun signs in their charts, even though Turner had Uranus at 0 degrees Gemini. \u00a0Constable was wedded to the rural Suffolk, whereas Turner was born in the city of London. They were born a year apart, and highlights the idea that often those of genius in their field often incarnate in a similar timeframe in order to push each other\u2019s talents to the hilt.\u00a0 Constable\u2019s Sun was loosely conjunct Jupiter, giving him a more optimistic nature intrinsically.\u00a0 John had the application of the Sun trine Saturn, but also the wide imagination of Sun closely square Neptune.\u00a0 His Venus was exactly conjunct Mars, which may depict the sensuous appreciation of nature in his work.\u00a0 Like Turner, he had Venus conjunct Uranus, but his social life was more conventional than Turner\u2019s. Mars conjunct Uranus may have given him the ability to engineer the realism in his work. His work, though spectacular, did not tend to move from the Realism of the day.\u00a0 Other strengths in his chart were Saturn trine Uranus and Neptune trine Pluto.<\/p>\n

Life and Work<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Constable was born in East Berholt, on the river Stour in Suffolk, and has given rise to the area being called \u201cConstable Country\u201d.\u00a0 His father was a corn merchant, and owner of a local mill.\u00a0 In his youth, he began sketching in his locality:<\/p>\n

“the sound of water escaping from mill dams etc., willows, old rotten planks, slimy posts, and brickwork, I love such things.”\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

That highlights the sensuality of his natal exact conjunction of Venus and Mars.\u00a0 He was clear from an early age that he wanted to pursue art, and his father helped set him up financially, but he was never hugely successful financially.<\/p>\n

Next to Turner\u2019s later work, his work is masterfully realistic and detailed, as in the painters he admired such as Gainsborough, but the colours are more muted than Turner\u2019s.\u00a0 His strength, I feel is in portraying a quintessential rural Englishness, and that is what appealed to his continental contemporaries.<\/p>\n

He did not have such a prolific output as Turner, and took far longer to be recognized in the art world.\u00a0 His most famous work \u201cThe Hay Wain\u201d was painted in 1821.\u00a0 Though he exhibited from 1806, he was not elected to the Royal Academy of Arts until he was 52.\u00a0 On the continent, he influenced the Barbizon School.<\/p>\n

Like Turner, he did travel, in England and Europe, and some of his notable works are of the Salisbury area, including Stonehenge.<\/p>\n

Marriage<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

He met his future wife early in life, and the relationship deepened in 1809.\u00a0 There was family opposition to the match on both sides, relating to the fact that she came from a wealthy family.\u00a0 He eventually married Maria Bicknell in 1816. \u00a0Their honeymoon on the south coast stimulated his ability to paint seascapes and open skies.\u00a0\u00a0 This period also increased his emotional range.\u00a0 He sold his first significant canvas in 1819, entitled \u201cThe White Horse\u201d.\u00a0 At the time, his progressed Sun was sextile his natal Venus in Gemini.\u00a0 This sale enabled him to be elected an associate of the Royal Academy, and encouraged him to paint on a grand scale.\u00a0 \u201cThe Hay Wain\u201d was exhibited two years later.\u00a0 It made a huge impression on the French painter Eugene Delacroix.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, his wife\u2019s health was faltering.\u00a0 They moved to Brighton in the hope that it would improve the condition of tuberculosis.\u00a0 She bore him seven children, and as the sea air had not proved to be of any great help, they moved back to Hampstead.\u00a0 It was the year 1818, and she died in November.\u00a0 This is the same year that Turner lost his father: a more complete astrological study may uncover an astrological correlation, in the movements of the outer planets.\u00a0 At her death, the North Node was on Constable\u2019s natal Saturn in Libra. He wrote:<\/p>\n

“hourly do I feel the loss of my departed Angel\u2014God only knows how my children will be brought up…the face of the World is totally changed to me”.<\/em><\/p>\n

He dressed in black, and tragically, he was left to care for his seven children.\u00a0 His work suffered, in his anguish.\u00a0 He died in 1837 of heart failure.<\/p>\n

He was elected to the Royal Academy in February 1829, at the age of 52. In 1831 he was appointed Visitor at the Royal Academy, where he seems to have been popular with the students.<\/p>\n

Relationship between Turner and Constable<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Turner\u2019s Mercury was sextile Constable Mars, a rivalrous but stimulating combination!<\/p>\n

Turner\u2019s Venus was trine Constable\u2019s Pluto, a more constructive interaspect.<\/p>\n

Turner\u2019s Neptune squared Constable\u2019s Sun, accentuating Constable\u2019s own sensitivities.<\/p>\n

Turner\u2019s Mercury was sextile Constable\u2019s Venus \u2013 an implied conversation.<\/p>\n

In a symbol of their rivalry, in 1832 at the Royal Academy Turner made a last minute addition to his painting \u201cHelvoetsluys\u201d by adding a bright red buoy.\u00a0 Constable\u2019s reaction was \u201cHe has been in here and fired a gun\u201d.\u00a0 Constable was exhibiting a painting of the opening of Waterloo Bridge.<\/p>\n

Exhibition<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The Exhibition \u201cTurner and Constable: Rivals and Originals\u201d runs from Thursday 27 November 2025 to 12 April 2026.\u00a0 Hubby and I have just bought our tickets.\u00a0 Hurry if you are interested, as we discovered they are booked up until February, already!<\/p>\n

I am a wholehearted fan of Turner, but very much appreciate the quintessentially English quality of Constable\u2019s work.\u00a0 Turner may be a national treasure, but the more abstract nature of his work does not achieve that unique place that Constable holds.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe climate emergency gives a renewed urgency to their work.\u00a0 Their influence can be seen in the cracking icebergs and crumbling coastlines of Emma Stibbon\u2019s paintings and\u00a0 the elemental installations of Olafur Eliasson.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

~ the Guardian leader<\/p>\n

Aspects <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s a Venusian day.\u00a0 All three astrological features today involve Venus (so particularly pertinent to Taureans and Librans).\u00a0 And the fourth feature of the week also involves Venus\u2026So an art blog is a suitable subject.<\/p>\n

Today Uranus opposed Venus in the early hours.\u00a0 Any attempts to persuade another of your point of view may lead to intransigence or detachment on their part.\u00a0 Someone around you may be displaying skittish behaviour.\u00a0 There may be strange social encounters, too.\u00a0 Be clear from your heart, to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings, as cross currents and crossed purposes can occur.\u00a0 \u00a0Venus opposite Uranus also neatly encapsulates the idea of an art rivalry.\u00a0 Your dreams in the night may encapsulate such competition (mine did, as it happens!)<\/p>\n

At breakfast-time, Venus was trine Neptune, so some elements of rivalry may have been washed away through spiritual alignment.\u00a0 Inspiration and spirituality uplift proceedings.\u00a0 Whatever your art form, it can be enhanced today (especially dance).\u00a0 In relationship, there is a potential for spiritual bonding.\u00a0 The effect of Neptune may be stronger than the effect of Uranus.<\/p>\n

This evening, Venus moves into Sagittarius.\u00a0 You may be in party mood, whether in person, socially distanced gatherings, or in virtual reality.\u00a0 Venus in Sagittarius ensures that the mood stays around, right through till Christmas Eve.\u00a0 It is there if you need it.\u00a0 Venus in Sagittarius is a good-will-to-all men and women vibe.\u00a0 Keep it going.<\/p>\n

Then we are into December\u2026On Tuesday (December 2nd<\/sup>) Venus will be sextile with Pluto.\u00a0 This aspect has the capacity to get to the root of a problem, be it Love and\/or Money, both of which are represented by aspects of Venus and Pluto.\u00a0 It could be a time of difficult but rewarding soul searching with loved ones.\u00a0 In finance, there could be hard won but satisfying bargaining and balancing \u2013 a suitable day for Rachel Reeves to make her case.\u00a0 (Laura Kuenssberg gave her a grilling this morning, then had a cosy chat with Kemi Badenoch).\u00a0 If you are an artist or musician, you could take a step further in your art, and deepen the value and content of the material you are working with.<\/p>\n

We then build up to a Full Moon at 13 degrees Gemini on Thursday (4th<\/sup>).\u00a0 The tussle of Moon in Gemini and Sun in Sagittarius is a tussle over communication, and that is the principle which can also bring them to a whole.\u00a0 You may feel or see acutely the two sides of a story, e.g. some of the polarities occurring in the news and worldwide.\u00a0 With the Moon being in Gemini, however, you may feel you cannot handle a depth emotional approach at this moment of time.<\/p>\n

Friday (5th<\/sup>) presents us with a square between the Sun and the Nodal Axis.\u00a0 This is a challenge for us to stay on our karmic path even if group pressure tries to sway our individuality.\u00a0 We have to find a way to honour our own way, while staying in integrity with society or outside pressures.\u00a0 It may present as a power struggle, but can be an opportunity to find higher solutions.<\/p>\n

On the same day, Mars trines Chiron.\u00a0 You may find that to be a useful extra in your toolbox.\u00a0 It combines physicality and healing.\u00a0 Qijong and Tai Chi would be good combinations of movement and healing if you practise them.\u00a0 Active projects may have healing applications, and healing initiatives will have a dynamic energy.<\/p>\n

At the end of the week, Saturday (6th<\/sup>) brings a trine between Mercury and Jupiter, which can restore sanity and optimism.\u00a0 This aspect can bring good news, which is welcome at any time.\u00a0 It can bring productivity, and good conversation.\u00a0 Mercury trine Jupiter expands our minds and philosophies.\u00a0 This is an upbeat vibe mentally, and can bring opportunities.\u00a0 It is also helpful for writing projects and studying, so you may make progress on such projects.<\/p>\n

The week in bullet points:<\/p>\n