Entrance of Calais Harbour (Liber Studiorum, part XI, plate 55)

Joseph Mallord William Turner

January 1, 1816 · Etching, aquatint and mezzotint; first state of six · 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. No preliminary drawing for this print is known, and the artist probably etched the image directly onto the plate from his related oil, "Fishing Boats entering Calais Harbor" (Frick Collection, New York). This is one of the few instances where Turner also developed the tone, using aquatint and mezzotint–normally a professional engraver executed this stage. We see fishing boats in the foreground negotiating a stiff breeze and high waves to approach the fortified entrance of a French harbor, with the city's skyline visible at left. The "M" in the top margin indicates Turner's category of Marine landscape.

Artist

Joseph Mallord William Turner

Date

January 1, 1816

Medium

Etching, aquatint and mezzotint; first state of six

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1928