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

The drawing is inverted relative to the sketchbook’s foliation. Finberg subsequently annotated his 1909 Inventory entry (‘S. Maria della Salute) with his reading of Turner’s inscription: ‘“Part of Front broken”’.1 The Turner scholar C.F. Bell marked another copy: ‘from across the canal near the traghetto’.2 Bell similarly annotated Finberg’s entry in his 1930 In Venice with Turner.3

Looking south-west across the Grand canal to the Seminario Patriarcale and the end of the Dogana on the left4 below the domes of the church of the Madonna della Salute, the viewpoint near the entrance to the Calle dei Tredeci Martiri (which A.J. Finberg recalled in 1930 as the ‘Calle Lunga S. Moisè’5) is effectively the same as that used for the view focusing on the Dogana on folio 40 recto (D14389), in front of the Palazzo (or Ca’) Giustinian, then the Hotel Europa and now the headquarters of the Venice Biennale. Ian Warrell has noted that the present view effectively forms a ‘panorama’ with D14389 at the centre and folio 66 verso (D14442), showing the church on the Isola di San Giorgio Maggiore, to the left.6 Finberg identified the Abbazia di San Gregorio to the right, with the dome of the church of Santa Maria del Rosario (the Gesuati) beyond, already obscured by later developments in his time.7

Finberg observed, leading on from subjects on previous pages:

Nevertheless, he commented that the ‘domes, especially the smaller one, are perhaps a trifle taller than they should be; the outlines of the main dome seem to be correct on the left side, but on the right they bulge too much’, although ‘the sketch gives the general proportions, the grace, and what I may call the movement, of the building with marvellous accuracy’.9 He suggested that it shows ‘the balustrade on the left side of the porch and some of the statues’ as ‘in need of repair; and to make assurance doubly sure Turner has written on the sea below the porch, – “Part of Front Broken.”’10 This reading is by no means certain, and the inscription appears to comprise five short words, possibly relating to adjacent boats.

The Salute recurs frequently in 1819 and later. Hardy George has noted that a study in the 1833 Vienna up to Venice sketchbook (Tate D31574; Turner Bequest CCCXI 81) shows this particular view, albeit in a ‘more summary’ rendering.11 Warrell has made comparisons with ‘increasingly spare’ drawings such as Tate D32017 (Turner Bequest CCCXIV 47) in the 1833 Venice sketchbook, and Tate D31830 (Turner Bequest CCCXIII 20a) in 1840’s Venice and Botzen book.12 For other drawings made in the vicinity and an overview of Turner’s coverage of Venice, see this sketchbook’s Introduction.

The blank recto is inscribed by John Ruskin in blue ink ‘54’ at the top right and ‘300’ at the bottom right, and stamped in black ‘CLXXV 54’ at the bottom right. When Tate accession numbers were allocated to this sketchbook, D14417 was linked to Turner Bequest CLXXV 54, the number in Finberg’s 1909 Inventory for this page, now bound as the verso but then likely separated from the book for exhibition. Ruskin’s ink numbering on the recto in sequence with adjacent pages apparently indicates that the present drawing was later rebound in the right place, but the lack of Finberg’s customary ‘a’ suffix to indicate it as a verso led to the initial creation of a second Tate number, D14418, to allow for it; this was subsequently cancelled, accounting for a gap in the sketchbook’s ‘D’ number sequence.

Technical notes:

The page is darkened, having formerly been extracted from the sketchbook and subjected to prolonged display, except where the edges were protected by a mount. Finberg also noted the page as ‘stained by flood 29/8/29’,1 reporting on its condition following the Tate Gallery flood of January 1928.