• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • About
    • First Time Here?
    • Archive
    • London Blogs
  • Blog
  • Travel
    • London Theater Tickets
    • Shopping
    • Tips
    • Tours
    • Transport
    • Maps
    • Parks
    • Resources
    • Restaurants
    • Top 10 London
  • Culture
    • Art
    • Buildings
    • Food
    • London Books
    • Movies
    • Museums
    • Music
    • Pubs
  • Londonism
    • Reviews
    • Fun London
    • Iconic London
    • Life in London
    • London Realities
    • Moving to London
    • Politics
  • The Tube
  • London History
    • Great London Buildings
    • Great Londoners
  • Contact
  • Guidebooks
    • 101 London Travel Tips – Guidebook
    • 101 Free Things to do in London

Londontopia

The Website for People Who Love London

You are here: Home / News Features / 10 Masterpieces By JMW Turner You Should Know

10 Masterpieces By JMW Turner You Should Know

Aug 31, 2020 By Jonathan

Being an innovator is not an easy task, especially in such a conservative country like Great Britain. William Turner was able to successfully experiment with color and be a pioneer in the workshop of playing light in the visual arts.

Joseph Mallord William Turner was born on April 23, 1775, in London in a family of a barber.

Turner’s childhood was not happy. His mother, shortly after his birth, developed a strong emotional breakdown. His father loved his only son very much and actively supported all his creative endeavors. Their family barber was on the banks of the Thames. William Turner, being a boy, often ran ashore to draw. Popularity came to him at a very young age. He studied at the Royal Academy and one of his watercolors got to the Academy’s annual exhibition. Before this, no one so young didn’t receive such an honor.

Throughout his life, the artist traveled a lot. His early style experienced the influence of the representatives of French romanticism. The contemporary art lovers compared his seascapes with the works of the brilliant Rembrandt. Although not all Turner paintings delighted the general public of his time. Many considered his experimental wall art to be too abstract and crazy. Although future generations praised his contribution to the formation of expressionism, as a new style in the visual arts.

Learn more about this great experimenter, landscape master, talented marine painter, using these ten works of art of JMW Turner.

1. Fishermen at sea  (1796)

Fishermen at Sea was Turner’s first oil painting presented at the Royal Academy.

A small fishing boat appears to be in the power of raging waves. On the left side of the picture, there are stone blocks, sharp needles of a part of the Isle of Wight.

Already in this early canvas, we see the struggle of man and nature. A sense of the instability of life, which is so characteristic of the artist’s worldview we will see more than once in his subsequent works.

2. Shipwreck (1805)

At the beginning of the 19th century, the great British artist gained great popularity. His business was going so well that he could afford to open an art gallery on the basis of his house. Turner planned to exhibit and sell his wall art. The first work to open the gallery was a canvas on the marine theme – Shipwreck. This was one of Turner paintings based on a popular plot among romantic artists of the time – the wreck of a passenger ship.

The sea is raging and the surface of the seething waves – the artist emphasizes the white color. People are trying to climb crowded boats, which against the backdrop of the raging elements seem so flimsy and defenseless. The dark tones of the sea almost merging with the gloomy sky, strengthen the sensation of the tragedy. In the distance of the sky, a subtle glimmer of sunlight can be seen, and only it gives hope for upcoming salvation.

3. Hannibal crossing the Alps (1812)

In this picture, Turner shows the play of air and light. Against the background of the elements, the man remains almost unnoticed. This is one of a series of historical paintings by JMW Turner. It captures the passage of the commander of Carthage through the Alps back in 218 BC.

4. Frosty morning (1813)

The canvas painted during the journey of William Turner to Yorkshire is known to depict his daughter Evelina. Perhaps that is why Turner didn’t want to sell this work during his lifetime, even for very large money at that time.

5. Dido Building Carthage, or The Rise of the Carthaginian Empire (1814)

Another striking historical plot found its manifestation in Turner’s large canvas. Dido became the heroine of the oil painting, praised in Virgil’s Aeneid. JMW Turner admitted to considering this picture a real masterpiece.

6. Rouen Cathedral (1832)

This canvas clearly demonstrates the artist’s ingenuity in depicting architecture. The canvas used dense gouache, and delicate watercolors applied to blue paper. The cathedral is painted with small dotted strokes of gouache. The painter uses gouache based on lead with the addition of a small amount of water to have a thick layer of paint well adhered to the surface of the canvas. Turner actively uses white and emerald purple. In watercolor, he was the first to use emerald purple, but imitators quickly picked up this technique.

7. Grand Canal – Venice (1835)

This painting based on a pencil drawing appeared during the trip to Venice in 1915. This masterpiece perfectly conveys the atmosphere of the city. The contours are slightly drawn in pencil and the plot is complemented by a symbiosis of bright watercolor and oil colors.

8. The Last Voyage of the Frigate Brave (1939)

This canvas was first presented in 1939 at the Royal Academy and is considered to be his best work by many admirers. In the center of the picture, we see the ship Brave against the backdrop of a blazing sunset. This ship is a veteran of the Battle of Trafalgar. A tiny coal-black ship tows a huge ship to the shore. Having served faithfully, the ship is sent for disassembly. Most likely, the plot of the picture was a figment of the artist’s imagination. Perhaps Turner conducts an allegory. A man who has worthily worked for all his life made a significant contribution and is retiring with dignity.

9. Snowstorm – a steamer leaves the harbor, giving signals in shallow water and measuring the depth of the lot (1942)

This is one of the artist’s many abstract marine landscapes. Such creative experiments caused a flurry of criticism from his contemporaries.

In this picture, all lines and strokes are subject to a single image of a snowstorm. A sea ship is trying to get out through it, and not to get aground, she probes the bottom of the sea with a navigation device.

10. White Barn Owl

Like other representatives of the romantic trend, William Turner admired and appreciated nature. A separate milestone of his work state the images of birds. In 1816, he published the Farnley Book of Birds. One of the most interesting watercolors of this book is the White Barn Owl. Like all other works in this book, this drawing is no plot. The bust of an owl made in brown and gray is depicted on white paper.

 

William Turner had an extraordinary mind and his paintings always had a deep meaning. Many of the artist’s ideas required deep thought and sometimes remained unsolved. It is important to make an effort to understand the hidden meaning of the author.

Share this:

  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Reddit
  • Pocket

Filed Under: News Features

About jonathan

Jonathan is a consummate Anglophile who launched Anglotopia.net in 2007 to channel his passion for Britain. Londontopia is its sister publication dedicated to everything London.

Primary Sidebar

Subscribe to Our Free London Updates

Free London News

Get the latest news on London history, culture, travel, exhibitions, and more right in your inbox!

Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription.

Get the Anglotopia/Londontopia App

Our Advertisers

If you are a mobile gamer, you may want to take a look at UK’s new mobile casinos and slots reviewed by NewCasinoUK.

Join the London Forum

  • Mudlarking
  • MY FAVOURITE PLACE IN LONDON
  • What's Your Favorite Place in London?
  • Paddington Station

London Guide

  • Ten Cheap Things You Can Do in London on a Budget
  • Ten London Exhibitions to Look Forward to in 2023
  • London’s Non-Free Museums: Your Guide to London’s Museums That Charge Admission
  • Trip Planning: Top 10 Exhibitions To Plan Your 2018 Trips to London Around
  • London Guide: Our Favorite Restaurants in London – London Restaurant Recommendations for Americans – What’s Your Favorite?

Connect With Us

  • Facebook
  • RSS Feed
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

Support Londontopia

Search our Extensive Archive

Top 10 London

  • Ten Unusual Exhibits to See in London
  • London Pubs: Ten Thameside Pubs for a Pint and a View
  • Top 10 London: Ten More Things to Do Along the River Thames
  • Top 10 London: Top Ten Shopping Centers in London
  • Museums of London: Ten Overlooked London Museums
  • Top 10 London: Top Ten Things to See and Do in Haggerston
  • Top 10 London: Top Ten Things to See and Do in Haringey
  • Top 10 London: Top Ten Things to See and Do in Redbridge
  • Top 10 London: Top Ten Things to See and Do in Hillingdon
  • Top 10 London: Top Ten Things to Do in Canonbury

Recent Posts

  • London Travel Alert: Staff at British Museum to walk out during half-term break
  • Poet Lemn Sissay ‘over the moon’ to receive Freedom of the City of London
  • English Heritage has unveiled six new blue plaques for London
  • National Portrait Gallery to reopen in June with two special exhibitions
  • Exploring The Cosmic House in London
  • Ten Social Media Accounts to Follow for Londonphiles
  • New Royal Academy Exhibition: Treasures from Spain and the Hispanic World
  • Pollock’s Toy Museum in London Has Closed Unexpectedly
  • The Fiver:  Five Live-Action Children’s Shows Set in London
  • In Pictures: Winter Lights festival returns to London for first time since 2020

Best Posts on Londontopia

  • 101 London Travel Tips
  • Top 100 London Attractions
  • How to Find the Cheapest Airfares to London
  • 10 Things NOT to do in London
  • Best London Guidebooks
  • 101 Free Things to do in London
  • London Lingo – A London Word Dictionary
  • Top 7 Tips for Doing London on the Cheap
  • Top 11 Myths American Believe about London
  • Guide to Eating in London
  • Best Times of Year to Travel to London
  • London Packing Tips
  • Top 11 Movies Set in London
  • Top Attractions off the Tourist Track
  • Top 5 Most Amazing London Hotels
  • Top 10 Hostels in London
  • Best Views in London Restuarants
  • London Taxi Ettiquette
  • Top 12 London Views
  • Great Fire of London
  • A Guide to Five of London’s Bridges
  • 10 Random Facts and Figures about Trafalgar Square
  • Top 100 British Slang Words

London Places to Explore

Bloomsbury Buckingham Palace Canary Wharf City of London Covent Garden Cutty Sark Greenwich Hampstead Hampton Court Palace Heathrow Houses of Parliament Hyde Park Imperial War Museum Islington Kensington Kensington Palace Leicester Square London London Eye London Transport Museum Museum of London National Gallery Notting Hill Piccadilly Circus Putney Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park Regent's Street Royal Academy Selfridges Somerset House Southbank Southwark St Pancras St Paul's Cathedral Tate Britain Tate Modern The City Tower Bridge Tower of London Trafalgar Square V&A Wandsworth West End Westminster Westminster Abbey

SIGN-UP FOR FREE LONDON WEEKLY UPDATES!

Please enter a valid email address
That address is already in use
The security code entered was incorrect
Thanks for signing up

Recent Videos

Walk Around London Virtually Right Now – Watched Walker is the YouTube Channel We All Need Right Now

Jason Hawkes Shares a Beautiful Video of London From Above That We All Need Right now

London Tube: You’ve Got to Watch This Amazing Mesmerizing Animation That Shows the Real Geography of the London Underground

Video: The Basics of Crossrail – London’s New Underground Line

London History: The Place Where Old London Double Decker Buses Went to Die

London Video: A Look at the Great Smog of London

Tube and London bus fares to rise by nearly 6% from March

What is Crossrail 2 and What is Its Current Status?

London Alert: Strike by London Underground workers to go ahead after last-minute talks fail

London Mayor hails Elizabeth line as direct routes and Sunday services begin

Elizabeth line fully opens and offers more direct journeys

Tube poet encourages writers to ‘bring who they are to the field’

Footer

About Londontopia

Londontopia is simply the website for people who love London. It was founded by Jonathan & Jackie Thomas from Anglotopia.net as a place to post articles solely focused on London and its environs. Keep up with all the latest London news at Londontopia! This site is geared towards people who love to visit London and our primary audience is North American but everyone is welcome!

When We’re in London Next

We don’t currently have any travel plans to London but hope to visit at some point in 2021.

  • SEO Backlinks
  • Travel Blog

SIGN-UP FOR FREE LONDON WEEKLY UPDATES!

Please enter a valid email address
That address is already in use
The security code entered was incorrect
Thanks for signing up

Copyright © 2023 Anglotopia, LLC · Website Developed by Anglotopia, LLC · Log in