About this artwork
Turner captured the scale and majesty of the gun ship in this small sketch. The floating buoy in the left foreground and the human activity at the right provide spatial markers which lead the eye into the picture. Turner's skill with the pencil achieves just the right balance of description and suggestion. Ships and shipping continued to fascinate him and he never tired of them as subject matter for his work. This is one of four drawings Turner made in 1827 while at East Cowes on the Isle of Wight. His signature at the bottom of each suggests they were made to present to a prospective patron.
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title:Man of War
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accession number:D NG 852
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materials:Pencil on paper
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date created:1827
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measurements:16.10 x 22.60 cm
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credit line:Henry Vaughan Bequest 1900
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photographer:Antonia Reeve
Joseph Mallord William Turner
Joseph Mallord William Turner
Turner transformed the art of landscape painting in Britain. From detailed topographical studies to expansive, atmospheric vistas his works celebrate the diversity and emotive power of nature. He was born in Covent Garden, the son of a barber, and exhibited his earliest sketches in his father's shop before studying at…