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

ISBN 978-1-84976-386-8
J.M.W. Turner > 1819-29 Italy and after > Thames, London and South of England 1821 ... > Old London Bridge Sketchbook > Artwork

Joseph Mallord William Turner A Measured Diagram; Elevations and the Floor Plan of a House c.1823-4

Joseph Mallord William Turner, ‘A Measured Diagram; Elevations and the Floor Plan of a House’ c.1823-4
Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
Folio 23 Verso:
A Measured Diagram; Elevations and the Floor Plan of a House c.1823–4
D40962
Turner Bequest CCV 23a
Pencil on white wove paper, 98 x 162 mm
Part watermark ‘182’
Inscribed by Turner in pencil ‘5’, ‘9 27’, ‘7 21’, ‘20’, ‘13’, ‘20’ and ‘39’ at points on diagram bottom centre, some figures ascending vertically or diagonally
Inscribed by ?John Ruskin in red ink ‘972’ top right, upside down
 
Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856
Pages such as this, with small ad hoc working diagrams, are scattered through Turner’s sketchbooks; like his terser written notes, they can be difficult to interpret. Inverted relative to the book’s foliation, down the right-hand side are two rough elevations of a small, symmetrical two-storey building (probably a house), and a floor plan including stairs. There is no indication as to whether the structure is real or a form of elaborate doodle.
In the middle of the page is a diagram comprising a triangular outline with horizontal divisions and an area of more complexity at the lower centre. The very specific numbering suggests measurements of a real object or plot of land, whether in inches, feet or yards. A plan of the bows of a boat or ship may be a possibility; compare the diagrams of what seem to be sails inside the front cover of the contemporary London Bridge and Portsmouth sketchbook (Turner Bequest CCVI; D40966).

Matthew Imms
December 2014

How to cite

Matthew Imms, ‘A Measured Diagram; Elevations and the Floor Plan of a House c.1823–4 by Joseph Mallord William Turner’, catalogue entry, December 2014, in David Blayney Brown (ed.), J.M.W. Turner: Sketchbooks, Drawings and Watercolours, Tate Research Publication, April 2015, https://www.tate.org.uk/art/research-publications/jmw-turner/joseph-mallord-william-turner-a-measured-diagram-elevations-and-the-floor-plan-of-a-house-r1172590, accessed 23 April 2024.