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

ISBN 978-1-84976-386-8
J.M.W. Turner

Joseph Mallord William Turner At Sea c.1845

Joseph Mallord William Turner, ‘At Sea’ c.1845
At Sea c.1845
D35243
Turner Bequest CCCLIII 4
Watercolour on white wove paper prepared with a grey wash, 221 x 332 mm
Watermark ‘J Whatman | Turkey Mills | 1823’
Inscribed in red ink ‘4’ bottom right (smudged)
Stamped in black ‘CCCLIII 4’ bottom right
Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856
In this drawing the horizon slopes slightly down to the right. A patch of reserved paper in the centre of the sky suggests that this was the position of the sun; the brushstrokes emanating upwards, out from this patch are possibly meant to define rays of sunlight. Repeated diagonal dabs of the brush above the horizon suggest clouds; below it these dabs may signify reflections or waves.
Technical Notes:
In common with others in this sketchbook, the leaf is loose of its binding. There is a tear in the centre of the right-hand edge, measuring 10mm. The leaf bears patches of discolouration, particularly so down the right-hand edge. This is probably as a result of damage in the Tate Gallery flood of 1928.
Verso:
Blank, bearing patches of discolouration and offsetting in chalk and watercolour.

Amy Concannon
May 2025

How to cite

Amy Concannon, ‘At Sea c.1845’, catalogue entry, May 2025, in David Blayney Brown (ed.), J.M.W. Turner: Sketchbooks, Drawings and Watercolours, Tate Research Publication, July 2026, https://www.tate.org.uk/art/research-publications/jmw-turner/at-sea-r1214151, accessed 11 July 2026.