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

ISBN 978-1-84976-386-8
J.M.W. Turner > 1819-29 Italy and after > Ports of England c.1822-8 > Ports of England Sketchbook > Artwork

Joseph Mallord William Turner Seascape c.1822-3

Joseph Mallord William Turner, ‘Seascape’ c.1822-3
Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
Folio 3 Recto
Seascape c.1822–3
D17722
Turner Bequest CCII 3
Pencil and watercolour on white wove paper, 257 x 178 mm
Inscribed by John Ruskin in red ink ‘3’ bottom right
Blind-stamped with Turner Bequest monogram bottom right
Stamped in black ‘CCII–3’ bottom right
 
Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856
In this undeveloped sketch Turner depicts a stretch of sombre sea at the bottom of the sheet in grey wash. An area of cloud rendered in paler grey looms heavily overhead. The brushwork is a contrast of vigorous dry strokes and wet, translucent applications of wash. Despite its minimalism the drawing is successful in its evocation of the atmospheric gloom of a British seascape on an inclement day.
Verso:
Blank

Alice Rylance-Watson
March 2013

How to cite

Alice Rylance-Watson, ‘Seascape c.1822–3 by Joseph Mallord William Turner’, catalogue entry, March 2013, in David Blayney Brown (ed.), J.M.W. Turner: Sketchbooks, Drawings and Watercolours, Tate Research Publication, September 2014, https://www.tate.org.uk/art/research-publications/jmw-turner/joseph-mallord-william-turner-seascape-r1148292, accessed 24 April 2024.