Chain of Alps from Grenoble to Chamberi (Liber Studiorum, part X, plate 49)

Joseph Mallord William Turner|William Say|Joseph Mallord William Turner

May 23, 1812 · Etching and mezzotint; first state of four · 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 Say here added mezzotint to describe the expansive Isere valley centered on Grenoble. As British travelers approached from France, this was their first view of the alps, and the image of figures resting in front of a burst of sunlight was likely intended to contrast with "Peat Bog" (Liber Studiorum, no. 45), which shows workers toiling in the rain. The "M" in the upper margin indicates Turner's category of Mountainous landscape.

Artist

Joseph Mallord William Turner|William Say|Joseph Mallord William Turner

Date

May 23, 1812

Medium

Etching and mezzotint; first state of four

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1928