Print made by Thomas Goff Lupton, 1791–1873, Britishafter Joseph Mallord William Turner, 1775–1851, British
Title:
The Eddystone Lighthouse
Date:
1824
Materials & Techniques:
Mezzotint; engraver's proof, Turner's copies on medium, slightly textured, beige laid paper
Dimensions:
Sheet: 14 7/8 × 21 5/8 inches (37.8 × 54.9 cm)
Credit Line:
Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Collection
Copyright Status:
Public Domain
Accession Number:
B1977.14.8297
Gallery Label:
This mezzotint depicts powerful waves crashing against the Eddystone Lighthouse near Plymouth. The shattered mast of a sinking ship fills the foreground, its rigging pulled loose and caught by the force of the wind. The drama of the scene is enhanced by the virtuosic exploitation of the mezzotint medium, with its emphatic contrasts of light and dark, which are most notable in the lighthouse lantern and the crescent moon that illuminates the cloud-filled night sky. The first and only published example from an abandoned print series, it dates from around the time Turner is thought to have begun work on the “Little Liber” plates. Given its parallels in tone, form, and handling, it is possible that this print may have inspired their similarly expressive use of the mezzotint medium. Gallery label for J. M. W. Turner: Romance and Reality (Yale Center for British Art, March - 29, 2025 - July 27, 2025)
