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

ISBN 978-1-84976-386-8
J.M.W. Turner > 1802-18 Academician and professor > Colour Studies of the Sun, Skies and ... > Skies Sketchbook > Artwork

Joseph Mallord William Turner Study of Sky above the Sea c.1818

Joseph Mallord William Turner, ‘Study of Sky above the Sea’ c.1818
Folio 9 Recto:
Study of Sky above the Sea c.1818
D12457
Turner Bequest CLVIII 9
Watercolour on white wove paper, 125 x 247 mm
Blind-stamped with Turner Bequest monogram bottom right
Inscribed in red ink ‘9’ bottom right
Stamped in black ‘CLVIII – 9’ bottom right
Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856
The upper half of this barely developed composition shows heavy cloud, with a number of diagonal strokes perhaps indicating rain. The short erratic brushstrokes in the lower half may serve to evoke choppy water. If so, then perhaps this is another study of the sky above the coast.
See the sketchbook’s Introduction for general notes on possible locations and dating.
Technical notes:
Irregular staining is evident along the right-hand edges of the leaf, possibly sustained in the 1928 Tate Gallery flood.
Verso:
Blank

Caitlin Doley
July 2024

How to cite

Caitlin Doley, ‘Study of Sky above the Sea c.1818’, catalogue entry, July 2024, in David Blayney Brown (ed.), J.M.W. Turner: Sketchbooks, Drawings and Watercolours, Tate Research Publication, October 2024, https://www.tate.org.uk/art/research-publications/jmw-turner/study-of-sky-above-the-sea-r1208881, accessed 22 November 2024.