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

ISBN 978-1-84976-386-8
J.M.W. Turner > 1802-18 Academician and professor > Colour Studies of the Sun, Skies and ... > Skies Sketchbook > Artwork

Joseph Mallord William Turner Study of a Stormy Sky above the Sea c.1818

Joseph Mallord William Turner, ‘Study of a Stormy Sky above the Sea’ c.1818
Folio 31 Recto:
Study of a Stormy Sky above the Sea c.1818
D12479
Turner Bequest CLVIII 31
Watercolour on white wove paper, 125 x 247 mm
Blind-stamped with Turner Bequest monogram bottom right
Inscribed in red ink ‘31’ bottom right
Stamped in black ‘CLVIII – 31’ bottom right
Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856
This page shows a turbulent scene with dark grey storm clouds breaking above what appears to be the sea. Thick diagonal brushstrokes across the right-hand side of the composition suggest sheets of rain buffeted by strong winds. The jagged brushstrokes in the lower half of the composition suggest the combined chaos of crashing waves and falling rain. In terms of its appearance and subject matter, the sketch is comparable to the rectos of folios 23, 24, 28 and 32 (D12471, D12472, D12476, D12480).
See the sketchbook’s Introduction for general notes on possible locations and dating.
Technical notes:
There is some staining visible in the upper left- and right-hand corners of the leaf, possibly sustained during the 1928 Tate Gallery flood.
Verso:
Blank, save for stain marks in the upper left-hand corner, corresponding with that visible on the recto.

Caitlin Doley
July 2024

How to cite

Caitlin Doley, ‘Study of a Stormy Sky above the Sea c.1818’, catalogue entry, July 2024, in David Blayney Brown (ed.), J.M.W. Turner: Sketchbooks, Drawings and Watercolours, Tate Research Publication, October 2024, https://www.tate.org.uk/art/research-publications/jmw-turner/study-of-a-stormy-sky-above-the-sea-r1208903, accessed 07 May 2025.