Update: Turner and Heidelberg – a newly identified source for the Tate painting

Since completing part #6 of the SublimeSites.co series on Turner and Heidelberg, I have discovered a potential literary source for the subject of the Tate oil painting. In part #6, I suggested that the composition of the painting was based on a sketch in the 'Mountain Fortress' sketchbook in the Turner Bequest at the Tate … Continue reading Update: Turner and Heidelberg – a newly identified source for the Tate painting →

Turner and Scotland #1: Ben Arthur from near Ardgartan

Not all my Turnering goes according to plan. This is an interim report on a new identification for a watercolour at the British Museum. Currently called ‘Mountain study, a view in north Wales (?)’ this can now be confirmed instead as a view of Ben Arthur from the entrance to Glen Croe above Ardgartan. On … Continue reading Turner and Scotland #1: Ben Arthur from near Ardgartan →

Cotman and Turner’s ‘Van Tromp’: A newly identified study of 1832

On 10 May 2015, I posted a short article identifying one of the Cotman sketches at Leeds Art Gallery as a memorandum of a painting by Turner, ‘Helvoetsluis’, exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1832. It was touching to discover some new documentation of Cotman’s admiration for Turner. Then, just recently, a group of seven … Continue reading Cotman and Turner’s ‘Van Tromp’: A newly identified study of 1832 →

In Turner’s Footsteps at Heidelberg: Part 6

REVISED 14 April 2016 (DH) towards end, to discuss recently discovered poetic source This post concludes the essay begun on 19 October 2015 and continued on 18, 20 and 23 November 2015 and 17 January 2016. In part #1, I followed in the footsteps of Turner’s comprehensive exploration of Heidelberg in 1833. In part #2, … Continue reading In Turner’s Footsteps at Heidelberg: Part 6 →

In Turner’s Footsteps at Heidelberg: Part 4

This post continues the essay begun on 19 October 2015 and continued on 18 November 2015, and 20 November 2015. In part #1, I followed in the footsteps of Turner’s comprehensive exploration of Heidelberg in 1833. In part #2, I looked at a major finished watercolour that he developed in the early 1840s, and a … Continue reading In Turner’s Footsteps at Heidelberg: Part 4 →

In Turner’s Footsteps at Heidelberg: Part 3

This post continues the essay begun on 19 October 2015 and continued on 18 November 2015. In part #1, I followed in the footsteps of Turner’s comprehensive exploration of Heidelberg in 1833. In part #2, I looked at a major finished watercolour that he developed in the early 1840s, and a return visit to Heidelberg … Continue reading In Turner’s Footsteps at Heidelberg: Part 3 →

In Turner’s Footsteps at Heidelberg: Part 2

This post continues the essay begun on 19 October 2015. There, I followed in the footsteps of Turner’s comprehensive and systematic exploration of Heidelberg in 1833. Here, I look at a major finished watercolour that he developed in the early 1840s, and a return visit to Heidelberg at the same time. After the visit of … Continue reading In Turner’s Footsteps at Heidelberg: Part 2 →

In Ruskin’s Footsteps at Bellinzona: The Salita della Nocca

This article returns the attention of Sublimesites.co to the southern Swiss city of Bellinzona to investigate another site drawn by John Ruskin. Bellinzona has been the subject of two previous articles published on 29 September 2014. The new site is the Salita della Nocca, a narrow, cobbled path that climbs outside the walls to Montebello … Continue reading In Ruskin’s Footsteps at Bellinzona: The Salita della Nocca →

Turner at Sallanches, 1836

This article is prompted by a watercolour that Turner made on his tour to the Alps in 1836. That tour was the subject of the exhibition Turner, Mont Blanc and the Val d’Aosta held at the Archaeological Museum in Aosta in 2000. At that time I identified its subject as the French town of Sallanches, … Continue reading Turner at Sallanches, 1836 →

Turner in Italy: Rome from Mount Aventine, 1836

This article gives some thought to a major painting by J.M.W.Turner, Rome from Mount Aventine, sold at Sotheby’s, London, on 3 December 2014 for £30.3m. Most previous accounts have accepted its topography more-or-less at face value: It turns out to be intriguingly deviant. I spent most of my teaching career extolling the imperative of drawing. … Continue reading Turner in Italy: Rome from Mount Aventine, 1836 →