Finding beauty in newness

Turner was 64 when he painted The Fighting Temeraire. He was born in 1775 in a down-at-heel area of London near Covent Garden but managed to enrol at the prestigious Royal Academy of Arts aged 14. He became an Academician at the precocious age of 24, and a Professor of Perspective when he was just … Read more

The Fighting Temeraire: Why JMW Turner’s greatest painting is so misunderstood

JMW Turner’s The Fighting Temeraire became a national celebrity when it was first unveiled in 1839, and its fame has endured to the present day. It was once voted Britain’s favourite painting and currently features on £20 banknotes. But the widely accepted interpretation of this iconic painting’s message might, in fact, contradict Turner’s true intentions. … Read more