Print made by Robert Wallis, 1794–1878, Britishafter Joseph Mallord William Turner, 1775–1851, British
Title:
Barnard Castle, Durham
Date:
1827-1838
Materials & Techniques:
Etching and engraving, with graphite, scraping out, and chine collé; touched engraver's proof on moderately thick, slightly textured, cream wove paper
Dimensions:
Sheet: 12 5/8 × 18 1/8 inches (32.1 × 46 cm)
Credit Line:
Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Collection
Copyright Status:
Public Domain
Accession Number:
B1977.14.6896
Gallery Label:
These works typify the many topographical views that Turner created specifically for reproduction as prints. The watercolor (left) is one of a hundred such works that Turner produced for the long-running print series Picturesque Views in England and Wales (published 1825–38). Its subject is the twelfth-century ruin of Barnard Castle in northeastern England. Turner deliberately enhanced the romantic appeal of the scene by exaggerating the castle’s height above the river, including tiny figures to increase its apparent scale, and bathing the scene in diffuse, golden light. The print (right) shows how carefully the engraver translated Turner’s vivid colors into line and tone, including such subtle details as the light filtering through the castle windows and the minutely graduated shading of the sky above. Gallery label for J. M. W. Turner: Romance and Reality (Yale Center for British Art, March - 29, 2025 - July 27, 2025)