During the summer of 1794 Turner toured the midlands and Wales in response to an early commission to produce designs for . This view of Lichfield cathedral is one of the more detailed he made on the spot but it was never translated into . Nearly 30 years after the first midland tour, however, Turner retrieved the sketch to use as the basis for a finished . While the latter is now in a private collection, its preparatory colour study forms part of the Turner Bequest. The corresponding paint splashes on the 1794 drawing prove that Turner kept his earlier sketches with a view to their potential for later use.
Gallery label, September 2004
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