Joseph Mallord William Turner

This sheet is one of a series of sketches associated with a tour of the Seine with a proposed dating of 1827–9. The studies are characterised by the use of pen and ink on blue paper; for more information see the Introduction to this section.

The Church of Notre-Dame was a key attraction of Louviers, a thriving manufacturing town in Normandy. The church’s south façade and porch form important examples of late Gothic architecture. As Ian Warrell has noted, Turner’s interest in the church saw him work from similar viewpoints as other artists attracted to the church at Louviers, including Samuel Prout (1783–1852) and John Sell Cotman (1782–1842).1 This sketch sees the church viewed from the south-east. For a straight-on view of the spectacular southern façade see D24840 (Turner Bequest CCLX 4). For further views of the church catalogued within this section see D24902, D24909, D24950, D24962 and D24967 (Turner Bequest CCLX 66, 73, 114, 126, 131). Turner also made two studies of the church’s interior (Tate D24851–D24852; Turner Bequest CCLX 15–16).

Technical notes:

The paper around the image is discoloured as a result of light exposure, presumably a legacy of the sheet’s early exhibition history as part of the Second Loan Collection between 1869 and 1931.

Verso:

The verso of this sheet could not be examined at the time of cataloguing.