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 Heavy Clouds c.1818

Joseph Mallord William Turner, ‘Study of Heavy Clouds’ c.1818
Folio 59 Recto:
Study of Heavy Clouds c.1818
D12507
Turner Bequest CLVIII 59
Watercolour on white wove paper, 125 x 247 mm
Watermark ‘J Whatman | 1814’
Blind-stamped with Turner Bequest monogram bottom right
Inscribed in red ink ‘59’ bottom right
Stamped in black ‘CLVIII – 59’ bottom right
Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856
This page shows a skyscape dominated by heavy grey clouds. The sections of blue paint in the lower left section of the page could be blue sky breaking through the clouds or perhaps they are meant to suggest a body of water.
See the sketchbook’s Introduction for general notes on possible locations and dating.
Technical notes:
Some dark stains are visible along the very edge of the leaf, possibly caused by water damage sustained during the 1928 Tate flood.
Verso:
Blank, save for grey marks across the top and right-hand side of the page, likely offset from folio 60 recto opposite (D12508).

Caitlin Doley
July 2024

How to cite

Caitlin Doley, ‘Study of Heavy Clouds 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-heavy-clouds-r1208931, accessed 03 October 2025.