This exceptional mature landscape work by JMW Turner was almost certainly made in the 1830s on one of his visits to the Lake District. Boldly worked in pure watercolour, with no preliminary pencil under drawing, it represents an important essay in the motifs which most engaged Turner: the confluence of earth, water, and sky, in this case animated by evening light. As with other colour studies of the mid-1830s, Turner omits all extraneous detail or narrative content, concentrating solely on the landscape and elements. As such, it points to an important shift of focus in Turner’s career that took place in the mid-1830s, as he developed what would become his late style and working methods. Formally, as the decade progressed, Turner became increasingly preoccupied by the sensation of being in the landscape he sought to depict, remarking to John Ruskin in 1844 that ‘atmosphere is my style’. Although not intended as a preliminary study for a more finished work, this rich, evocative watercolour almost certainly served to aid Turner in the process of observation, intensifying his experience of shifting light and weather on the dramatic terrain of the Lake District. As such, it can be viewed as anticipating Turner’s great sequence of watercolours depicting lakes in Switzerland made in the following decade. Preserved in exceptional condition, this large sheet has not been on the market for over quarter of a century.

More Information