Young Anglers (Liber Studiorum, part VII)

Joseph Mallord William Turner|Robert Dunkarton|Joseph Mallord William Turner

June 1, 1811 · Etching and mezzotint; first state of three · Drawings and Prints

Turner distilled his ideas about landscape In "Liber Studiorum" (Latin for Book of Studies), a series of seventy prints plus a frontispiece published between 1807 and 1819. To establish the compositions, he made brown watercolor drawings, then etched outlines onto copper plates. Professional engravers usually developed the tone under Turner's direction, and Dunkerton here added mezzotint to describe boys gathered near a pond, likely in Marylebone Fields (later developed into Regent's Park). One holds a fishing rod, another a watering can, and a third examines a bottle. Coats and hats are piled at left and minnows scattered on the ground as another boy fishes near a large house. The letter "P" in the upper margin indicates Turner's category of Pastoral landscape and, by representing a still rural corner of London, the artist comments on London's rapid urbanization.

Artist

Joseph Mallord William Turner|Robert Dunkarton|Joseph Mallord William Turner

Date

June 1, 1811

Medium

Etching and mezzotint; first state of three

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1928