Turner and the Sea was an exhibition at the National Maritime Museum, this was an exhibition I really wanted to visit because his painting 'The Fighting Tameraire' was in the exhibition and this is a painting I really wanted to see. The painting was great to see in the flesh and being able to see the texture of the canvas was brilliant however I wasn't as amazed as I thought I would be, probably because I have seen the painting so many time on books and on the internet so when I got to see the painting in real life it didn't seem that new. On the other hand his painting 'The Battle of Trafalgar' was a truly amazing painting to see, when you see the painting in a book you just cant see all the small details in the painting. 'The Battle of Traffalgar' is the size of a wall so when you look at it you can make out every little detail of the painting such as the small ships in the background and the figures on the ships, you could stand and stare at the painting for ages. Another painting I was glad to see was his painting 'Fishermen at Sea' this was the first oil painting Turner ever exhibited, Turner was just 21 when he painted it but the painting has very ambitious lighting and detail. The work of Turner has been a key influence on my colour photography in terms of his late afternoon light, which is my favorite time to shoot and also his compositions and how he uses the whole canvas keeping your eye moving around the composition. He also uses the golden ratio of 1-1.618. From the National Maritime Museum I had to make my way back to The British Museum (Bare in mind I'd only been using the tube for a day this was quite a challenge). I had to make 2 train changes and the central line was closed so I had to get off at Oxford Circus and walk 20 minutes to get there. I don't think I've ever walked as fast as I did to get there as I had to get there before it closed.
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J M W Turner 'The Fighting Tameraire'
J M W Turner 'The Battle of Trafalgar'
J M W Turner 'Fishermen at Sea'
