Edit: This is a continuation of my chronicling the Turner gallery at the Tate Britain.
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These paintings by Turner are part of his unfinished works - which were discovered after his death - and concern his enduring fascination with the seas's dazzling translucency, and its transient and dissolving movement.
Norham Castle, Sunrise
This masterpiece of Norham Castle is fascinating and engrossing, and so very beautiful. I had it on my wall opposite my table while studying at Cambridge. I think it puts a smile on my face.
This feels like an early morning walk; when the misty river is illuminated by the radiant morning sunlight. A river which has become shallow enough for cows to stand in. The contrast between the yellow and blue highlights the castle and the rising sun.
Turner's water has a mystic deep quality to it. The charming atmosphere - through the blazing refulgence of sunshine - seems to bounce of the surface of the landscape and subsume the canvass. Turner's brushwork creates an evanescent ethereality to the water. As though, if I were to reach into the painting, it would turn into a misty foggy moistness. I love how the cow bears a reflection in the water which gives the painting a feeling of tranquil calm.
I see why people regard Turner as having laid down the foundation for impressionism and abstraction.
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Shipping at the mouth of the Thames
Shipping boats off the Thames Estuary.
A gentle breeze this time, and the direction and position of the shipping boats as they navigate the choppy waters looks quite clever. It does feel consistent with the bouncing seas. The sky looks unfinished; but it also looks like a storm if coming and will soon envelope the whole sky.
Again, I think this is delightful.
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A ship aground, Yarmouth
A painting intended for the Earl of Egremont.
This painting is really enchanting. I love the way Turner's waves have an amazing curved shape that strectches back into the distance. The abandoned ship is positioned in such a way as to look as though it ran aground on rocks.
The stress and hazard of the disturbed vessel is counterposed with a very calm and placid sea. The sun is setting and the clouds seem to be coming over the horizon. What's surprising is that this painting is apparently incomplete. I don't think it needs much more.
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Breakers on a flat beach
According to the Tate, Turner may have made this painting in Margate. He may have travelled from London via steamboat.
I love the dark swirling pool of blackness at the bottom; and I like the way the two pillars of billowing darkness are rising. It feels like the edge of a forest at the banks of some river. I also like the patches of blue skyline at the top that are irradiated by Turner's sunshine. It's a shame this wasn't completed. There's a hint of some appendages at the bottom-right corner?
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A wreck, with fishing boats
The skyline is probably incomplete. But somehow it seems to work quite well.
The water seem to have a similar texture and movements to the sky. You can just make out two people on their boat. It's quite pretty.
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East Cowes Castle, the Regatta Starting for Their Moorings No. 3
According to the Tate, this painting probably depicts a race.
The tranquil water and irradiant sunshine floods the painting to create an aureate autumnal feel.
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Yacht Approaching the Coast
An unfinished painting.
Feels like a journey through life, the pulsating etherality of the sunshine, has a dazzling effect.
Once again, I find this mesmerising.
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