A5 (14.8 x 21 cm) single postcard featuring The Palazzo Balbi on the Grand Canal, Venice by Joseph Mallord William Turner, part of the National Galleries of Scotland Collection.

Turner achieved a delicate balance between broad suggestion and descriptive detail in his depiction of this magnificent stretch of the Grand Canal.

The play of light and shadow emphasises the architectural structure of its many palaces and their reflections becoming less distinct as they recede into the distance. The gondolas in the foreground are suggested with wonderful economy and are echoed by others moored at intervals along the route.

Joseph Mallord William Turner (23 April 1775 – 19 December 1851), known as J. M. W. Turner, was an English Romantic painter, printmaker, and watercolourist, known for his brilliant, expressive colourisation, imaginative landscapes and turbulent, often violent marine paintings.