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

ISBN 978-1-84976-386-8
J.M.W. Turner > 1836-47 Modern painter > Louis-Philippe at Portsmouth 1844 > Louis-Philippe at Portsmouth sketchbook > Artwork

Joseph Mallord William Turner Boats in Portsmouth Harbour 1844

Image 1 of 2
Joseph Mallord William Turner, ‘Boats in Portsmouth Harbour’ 1844
Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851
Folio 4 Recto:
Boats in Portsmouth Harbour 1844
D35691
Turner Bequest CCCLXII 4
Pencil on white wove paper, 74 x 116 mm
Inscribed by John Ruskin in red ink ‘4’ bottom right
Stamped in black ‘CCCLXII – 4’ bottom right
 
Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856
Like the other rapid sketches in this book, this relates to the arrival of Louis-Philippe, King of the French, at Portsmouth Harbour on 8 October 1844, as discussed in the Introductions to the sketchbook and the overall section.
This slight sketch appears to show Portsmouth to the east from the harbour, with the cupola of the Cathedral. Compare for example more detailed drawings of the waterfront and skyline, perhaps from the summer of 1824, in the London Bridge and Portsmouth sketchbook (Tate D17944; Turner Bequest CCVI 16a). The boat-like forms immediately opposite on folio 3 verso (D35690) suggest that the two pages form a panoramic view.
Verso:
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Matthew Imms
September 2016

How to cite

Matthew Imms, ‘Boats in Portsmouth Harbour 1844 by Joseph Mallord William Turner’, catalogue entry, September 2016, in David Blayney Brown (ed.), J.M.W. Turner: Sketchbooks, Drawings and Watercolours, Tate Research Publication, March 2017, https://www.tate.org.uk/art/research-publications/jmw-turner/joseph-mallord-william-turner-boats-in-portsmouth-harbour-r1185640, accessed 25 November 2024.