British, 1775 - 1851
Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775 - 1851) was born in London and began his career as a watercolour artist in the topographical tradition. From c1800 his main work was done in oils but he continued all his life to experiment with watercolours, hugely extending its range of expressive possibilities. Throughout his life his extensive travels within Britain, and after 1819 on the Continent, provided a constant source of inspiration for landscape painting which he interpreted in a wide variety of ways. His landscapes were often intended for publication from which he made a fortune. Towards the end of his life his style became increasingly visionary and misunderstood by the critics.
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