Joseph Mallord William Turner

There are two sketches here, one in line with the sketchbook’s foliation and the other inverted relative to it. The former is typical, noting yachts under sail in close juxtaposition, with an indication of bunting fluttering to their right. The latter is more pictorial, with hulls and sails roughly shaded in silhouette against a blustery sky, probably observed in a harbour, and likely at Cowes; the scrawled colour notes add immediacy. For more on studies in this sketchbook relating to the regatta events at Cowes from late July 1827 onwards, see the Introduction.