When the Romantic and Eccentric Artist Used His Platform to Make a Statement Against Slavery
J. M. W. Turner, or Will as he was know, is probably my favorite painter of all time. While his works are some of the most celebrated pieces in the history of British art, I appreciate him as much for his character. Turner was an eccentric who spoke his mind and disregarded the frivolities of his age. Despite the wealth gained from his work, he dressed plainly and gained a reputation for tattered garments. His prolific work and endearing personality provided him access to London’s elite society at the height of the Empire.
Turner’s work was both progressive and vast. He joined the Royal Academy of Art in 1789 when he was only 14 years old. Against the advice of his professors, Turner chose to focus out-of-vogue medium of landscapes to express his love for architecture and reverence for nature. During his subsequent sixty-two year career, Turner produced at least 550 oil paintings, 2,000 watercolors, and 30,000 sketches.
The evolution of Turner’s career can be paralleled to a fellow pillar of British art, Radiohead. He began by mastering a contemporary art form early on – Romantic Landscapes – and went on to push the boundaries of his medium beyond anything that had come before. His exploration of how light and shape can be depicted through paint created a proto-impressionism then went on into the realm of abstract. All the while, garnering critical acclaim and financial success.
Most of Turner’s work held a mirror up to the society in which he lived, as any great artist does. His career coincided with the dawn of the Industrial Revolution and many of his prominent works depicted industrialization’s cold, unfeeling shadow falling over Britain’s heritage. A broad view of Turner’s work portrays nature’s pristine beauty and awe-inspiring power. Humans are often miniscule and placed helplessly at her mercy. One can infer Turner’s distaste for humanity’s attempt to overpower nature during the industrial revolution. He saw the hubris in this mistake and heedlessly attempted to warn the industrial age about nature’s wrath. Now that wrath is upon us two centuries later.