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

ISBN 978-1-84976-386-8
J.M.W. Turner > 1802-18 Academician and professor > West Country 1811 > Devonshire Coast, No.1 Sketchbook > Artwork

Joseph Mallord William Turner Cliffs Seen through Trees, Probably in South Devon 1811

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Joseph Mallord William Turner, ‘Cliffs Seen through Trees, Probably in South Devon’ 1811
Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
Folio 51 Recto:
Cliffs Seen through Trees, Probably in South Devon 1811
D08459
Turner Bequest CXXIII 51
Pencil on white wove writing paper, 75 x 117 mm
Inscribed by John Ruskin in red ink ‘51’ bottom right, descending vertically
Stamped in black ‘CXXIII – 51’ bottom left, descending vertically
 
Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856
Although the order of subjects in this sketchbook does not always reflect a direct topographical sequence, this drawing, along with those on folios 52 verso and 54 recto (D08462, D08465; CXXIII 51c, 53), falls among identified views in West Dorset and the adjacent coast of South Devon, suggesting that they were made in the latter area. There is some resemblance here to the view to the west over Budleigh Salterton, although the cliffs do not seem distant enough.
Technical notes:
There is some offsetting from the ink inscription on the opposite page, folio 50 verso (D08458).

Matthew Imms
June 2011

How to cite

Matthew Imms, ‘Cliffs Seen through Trees, Probably in South Devon 1811 by Joseph Mallord William Turner’, catalogue entry, June 2011, in David Blayney Brown (ed.), J.M.W. Turner: Sketchbooks, Drawings and Watercolours, Tate Research Publication, December 2012, https://www.tate.org.uk/art/research-publications/jmw-turner/joseph-mallord-william-turner-cliffs-seen-through-trees-probably-in-south-devon-r1136936, accessed 25 April 2024.