Jan Bartek – AncientPages.com – Joseph Mallord William Turner RA, commonly referred to as J. M. W. Turner or William Turner during his time, was an influential English Romantic artist born on April 23, 1775, and passed away on December 19, 1851. He gained recognition as a painter, printmaker, and watercolourist. Turner’s work is distinguished by its expressive use of color and imaginative landscapes, as well as his dynamic and often dramatic marine paintings that capture the power of nature’s forces.
The painting was discovered after a restoration project last year. Credit: Sotheby’s
His painting, The Rising Squall, recently resurfaced after being lost for over 150 years and was exhibited once again. This artwork portrays a dramatic scene of a former hot spring and spa in Bristol, viewed from the eastern bank of the River Avon before the construction of the Clifton Suspension Bridge. The painting traveled globally before returning to the UK, remaining unrecognized as an original Turner piece for over a century, until his signature was discovered last year during restoration.
The Rising Squall was publicly displayed at Sotheby’s in London from June 28 to July 1. The painting was sold at Sotheby’s auction house to a private UK collector for £1.9m, nearly eight times the estimated price. Bristol Museum & Art Gallery had been fundraising to acquire the masterpiece, but the combined total of £109,000 will now be returned to donors.
It is the earliest-known oil painting ever exhibited by the artist and is believed to be the only one depicting a Bristol scene. Julian Gascoigne, a senior specialist at Sotheby’s, described it as offering “a fascinating and very instructive insight into his early style.” He highlighted that this work reveals Turner—renowned for his watercolors—as a teenage artist brimming with “ambition and skill” as he explored oil painting.
Debuting at the Royal Academy in 1793, just three days after Turner turned 18, it was initially purchased by Reverend Robert Nixon from Turner’s father’s barber shop. The painting eventually faded into obscurity, despite its historical significance; its last known exhibition took place in Tasmania in 1858. Created during Turner’s first artistic tour from London to the West Country as a teenager, Bristol provided accessible dramatic scenery that greatly appealed to him.
Though mentioned in early obituaries of Turner’s works, The Rising Squall was mistakenly identified as a watercolor for over a century and thus omitted from catalogues of his oil paintings until its rediscovery last year during restoration efforts.
Previously, experts believed that Fishermen at Sea marked Turner’s earliest exhibited oil work, but this has been reconsidered with the discovery of this new information.
Written by Jan Bartek – AncientPages.com Staff Writer
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