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

Although Finberg bracketed this page with folio 30 verso opposite (D22378) as ‘“Solihull”, with church’ (quoting Turner’s inscription on the other page), the subject here, inverted relative to the sketchbook’s foliation, is actually Lichfield Cathedral, seen to the north across Minster Pool with the gables of houses in the Close below, obscuring the lower part of the cathedral. The view is now partly screened by trees on the far bank. The drawing appears slightly disjointed, and Turner may have moved once or twice while compiling the details of this elevation, with the west towers on the left and the crossing tower and south transept towards the right. Turner’s ‘7’ and ‘6’ note the number of bays along the respective parts of the façade. The sketch continues a little onto D22378, under which other views of Lichfield are noted.

Technical notes:

This leaf is affected by the extensive pale brown, mottled staining which extends throughout this particular gathering (folios 31–42; D22379–D22402) and also folios 30 and 43 recto and verso (D22377, D22378, D22403, D22404), as discussed in the Technical notes to the sketchbook’s Introduction.