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

ISBN 978-1-84976-386-8
J.M.W. Turner > 1819-29 Italy and after > Figures on a Beach c.1826-45 > Artwork

Joseph Mallord William Turner Seated Figures ?on a Beach, Perhaps Passengers in Transit c.1826-40

Joseph Mallord William Turner, ‘Seated Figures ?on a Beach, Perhaps Passengers in Transit’ c.1826-40
Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
Seated Figures ?on a Beach, Perhaps Passengers in Transit c.1826–40
D24622
Turner Bequest CCLIX 57
Chalk and gouache on blue wove paper, 140 x 185 mm
Blind-stamped with Turner Bequest monogram below right of centre
Inscribed in red ink ‘57’ bottom right
Stamped in black ‘CCLIX 57’ bottom right
Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856
This little group of seated figures may be relaxing on a beach or, as there seem to be one or two bulky objects with them, waiting to embark on a sea voyage. For other such scenes, see the Introduction.
As discussed there, this is one of the subjects of figures by the sea which Ian Warrell tentatively suggested as linked to Brighton around 1827, while noting that they could equally well show scenes in England or France on other occasions.1
1
See Warrell 1989, pp.120, 123 note 114.
Verso:
Blank; inscribed by John Ruskin in pencil ‘311 | O’ bottom right (partly obscured); inscribed in pencil ‘54–68’ top left; inscribed in pencil ‘D24622’ bottom left. There is a border of white paper or tape, indicating that the sheet was formerly mounted.

Matthew Imms
December 2015

How to cite

Matthew Imms, ‘Seated Figures ?on a Beach, Perhaps Passengers in Transit c.1826–40 by Joseph Mallord William Turner’, catalogue entry, December 2015, in David Blayney Brown (ed.), J.M.W. Turner: Sketchbooks, Drawings and Watercolours, Tate Research Publication, November 2016, https://www.tate.org.uk/art/research-publications/jmw-turner/joseph-mallord-william-turner-seated-figures-on-a-beach-perhaps-passengers-in-transit-r1182564, accessed 16 April 2024.