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

ISBN 978-1-84976-386-8
J.M.W. Turner > 1819-29 Italy and after > Ports of England c.1822-8 > Ports of England Sketchbook > Artwork

Joseph Mallord William Turner Beach with Buildings c.1822-3

Joseph Mallord William Turner, ‘Beach with Buildings’ c.1822-3
Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
Folio 15 Recto
Beach with Buildings c.1822–3
D17734
Turner Bequest CCII 15
Watercolour on paper, 257 x 178 mm
Inscribed by John Ruskin in red ink ‘15’ bottom right
Blind-stamped with Turner Bequest monogram bottom right
Stamped in black ‘CCII–15’ bottom right
 
Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856
Turner depicts a tranquil stretch of beach with buildings beyond, perhaps associated with local marine industry. Constructed with an array of daubs, strikes, and vigorous hatching, the handling in this drawing is expressive and quickly wrought. The swiftest impression of form is given: see, for example, the central group of building comprised of just a few daubs of grey wash becoming pocked and mottled towards the band of ochre wash beneath. Turner exploits the graininess of the paper to depict the waters at the bottom of the sheet. A focal point is created by the pool of saturated grey wash directly below the group of buildings suggesting their reflection in the water.
Verso:
Inscribed in pencil ‘CCII–15’ bottom centre and again in another hand towards centre right.

Alice Rylance-Watson
March 2013

How to cite

Alice Rylance-Watson, ‘Beach with Buildings c.1822–3 by Joseph Mallord William Turner’, catalogue entry, March 2013, in David Blayney Brown (ed.), J.M.W. Turner: Sketchbooks, Drawings and Watercolours, Tate Research Publication, September 2014, https://www.tate.org.uk/art/research-publications/jmw-turner/joseph-mallord-william-turner-beach-with-buildings-r1148304, accessed 16 April 2024.