Chalk and watercolour on paper
The Whalers Sketchbook
The Whalers Sketchbook
Kent Coast and Whaling c.1844-5
Kent Coast and Whaling c.1844-5
The Whalers Sketchbook
Tate Collection
Works with images
Joseph Mallord William Turner
Turner Bequest
Collection
Turner owned by Tate
<a href="https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/joseph-mallord-william-turner-558" aria-label="More by Joseph Mallord William Turner" data-gtm-name="header_link_artist" data-gtm-destination="page--artist">Joseph Mallord William Turner</a>
Vessels at Sea
Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856
sea
seascapes and coasts
ship, sailing
society
storm
transport: water
wave
weather
<p>This sketch is unusual for its extensive use of chalk, a medium Turner used infrequently. It creates an atmosphere of threat and foreboding. Here, ships are engulfed by a violent storm. A sweep of black chalk has been quickly scrubbed with a wet brush to create a wall of rain. A bolt of lightening hits masts on the left. The mysterious marks in the foreground might represent coils of a ship’s rope and an anchor, or a fin.</p><p><em>Gallery label, October 2023</em></p>
paper unique chalk watercolour
22 September 2017 – 14 January 2018
2018-01-14
22 September 2017 – 14 January 2018
2018-01-14
2017-09-22
New Art Gallery Walsall (Walsall, UK)
http://www.artatwalsall.org.uk/
2017-09-22
Legacies: JMW Turner and contemporary art practice
Loan-out
Vessels at Sea
support: 221 × 328 mm
Accepted by the nation as part of the <a href="/search?gid=999999781" data-gtm-name="tombstone_link_bequest" data-gtm-destination="list-page--search-results">Turner Bequest</a> 1856
<div class="text">
<p>This sketch is unusual for its extensive use of chalk, a medium Turner used infrequently. It creates an atmosphere of threat and foreboding. Here, ships are engulfed by a violent storm. A sweep of black chalk has been quickly scrubbed with a wet brush to create a wall of rain. A bolt of lightening hits masts on the left. The mysterious marks in the foreground might represent coils of a ship’s rope and an anchor, or a fin.</p>
</div>

Display caption
2023-10-25T00:00:00
display-caption
DISPLAY_CAPTION
sea seascapes and coasts ship, sailing society storm transport: water wave weather
CCCLIII 8