J.M.W. Turner: Sketchbooks, Drawings and Watercolours

Like many of Turner’s views from the road to the Simplon Pass, this sketch has been executed on white paper prepared with a grey watercolour wash. The white patches in the top left-hand corner indicate where the sheet was held during the process of covering it in paint. The dark ground and uneven granulations of the wash make the pencil drawing difficult to decipher but the visible details appear to show a mountainous vista with a bridge in the bottom left-hand corner. There is also evidence of a small amount of scratching out by the artist to provide some tonal contrast within the composition.

For a general discussion of Turner’s expedition to the Simplon Pass see the introduction to the sketchbook.