Joseph Mallord William Turner

Petworth House:Figures in the White Library, possibly Lord Egremont

1827

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In Tate Britain

Prints and Drawings Room

View by appointment

Artist: Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
Medium: Gouache and watercolour on paper
Dimensions: Support: 142 × 188 mm
Collection: Tate
Acquisition: Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856
Reference: D22749
Turner Bequest CCXLIV 87

Display caption

These works are part of a large group
of studies produced during Turner's visit
to Petworth in 1827. This grand country house, to the south-west of London,
was the principal home of Lord Egremont. He was a wealthy patron of contemporary art, who allowed artists to use Petworth
as an open studio.

The vivid impressions preserved in Turner's drawings show the relaxed nature of social gatherings at the house. Some focus on the intimacies of the bedrooms. These suggest either that Turner overstepped the bounds of decency, or that he delighted in creating fantasies about his fellow guests.

Gallery label, September 2004

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