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 A Group of Figures, Possibly at Brixham Harbour 1811

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Joseph Mallord William Turner, ‘A Group of Figures, Possibly at Brixham Harbour’ 1811
Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
Folio 56 Recto:
A Group of Figures, Possibly at Brixham Harbour 1811
D08469
Turner Bequest CXXIII 55
Pencil on white wove writing paper, 75 x 117 mm
Inscribed by Turner in pencil ‘[?Brix]’ top right
Inscribed by John Ruskin in red ink ‘55’ bottom right, descending vertically
Stamped in black ‘CXXIII – 55’ bottom left, descending vertically
 
Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856
Despite Finberg’s interpretation of their actions, the figures are drawn so rapidly and slightly that their activities are unclear and they may be bustling rather than arguing. There may be a boat with a rectangular sail on the left. Turner’s scrawled inscription is difficult to make out, but appears to be a place name and may be ‘Brix’ for Brixham, as per his inscription on the verso (D08470; CXXIII 55a).

Matthew Imms
June 2011

How to cite

Matthew Imms, ‘A Group of Figures, Possibly at Brixham Harbour 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-a-group-of-figures-possibly-at-brixham-harbour-r1136946, accessed 27 September 2024.