Introduction

Sublime Sites explores places painted or sketched by British artists Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775-1851), John Sell Cotman (1782-1842) and John Ruskin (1819-1900). It is dedicated to the proposition that their work can only be properly understood through identification and investigation of their landscape subjects. Only in this way can it be seen how they developed their observations into art.

I have been interested in this approach for over forty years and have published a number of books (see about the author). I have also accumulated a considerable amount of material that has not yet made it into print. As time goes on this is becomes more pressing, so as opportunity allows I will post a succession of articles drawing out material from my archive. I will also post more topical material relating to current projects or observations stimulated by the work of other scholars.

If you might be interested in the material that I have published over the years the please do take a look at the ‘about the author’ page. If you would like to hear something about my take on the artists on whom I’ve worked then please take a look at the individual artists’ pages.

Inevitably with a site like this there are issues with copyright, especially with images of the artists’ works. Where it is allowed I will post an image, or at least a link to an existing web image. In recent years a number of major galleries and museums have put images of works in their collections in the public domain. The British Museum pioneered this, and the Yale Center for British Art, amongst others, has since followed. One day all public collections might do the same. In the meantime I will make every effort to respect intellectual property rights. Please contact me if you think there is any error, or can help with images in any way.