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 ... > London Bridge and Portsmouth Sketchbook > Artwork

Joseph Mallord William Turner Shipping at Portsmouth ?1824

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Joseph Mallord William Turner, ‘Shipping at Portsmouth’ ?1824
Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
Folio 17 Verso:
Shipping at Portsmouth ?1824
D17946
Turner Bequest CCVI 17a
Pencil on white wove paper, 100 x 160 mm
Part watermark ‘18’
Inscribed by Turner in pencil ‘[?Red]’ centre right
 
Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856
There are three main bands of studies here, showing hulks and warships off Portsmouth’s naval dockyard. The central drawing, with the Semaphore Tower towards the right, continues briefly onto folio 18 recto opposite (D17947), with the hull of one of the vessels. With the page turned vertically, there is another waterfront view at the outer edge.
This is one of a continuous series of views around Portsmouth between folios 1 recto and 20 recto (D17913–D17951); many appear to have been made from a boat; for the overall sequence and details of the most prominent buildings and defences, see the Introduction.

Matthew Imms
December 2014

How to cite

Matthew Imms, ‘Shipping at Portsmouth ?1824 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-shipping-at-portsmouth-r1172663, accessed 19 April 2024.