Dort, or Dordrecht: The Dort Packet-Boat from Rotterdam Becalmed
Date:
1818
Materials & Techniques:
Oil on canvas
Dimensions:
62 × 92 inches (157.5 × 233.7 cm)
Credit Line:
Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Collection
Copyright Status:
Public Domain
Accession Number:
B1977.14.77
Gallery Label:
Dort, or Dordrecht is a brilliant demonstration of Turner’s quest to outdo the most celebrated of his Dutch predecessors. Its composition reworks Aelbert Cuyp’s famed The Maas at Dordrecht (ca. 1650). More than simply recreating its diffuse, golden light, however, Turner introduced a richness of coloring that endows his painting with even greater luminosity. The overall impression is one of tranquility and calm. Nevertheless, it soon becomes clear that the painting is filled with incident, seemingly based on scenes Turner witnessed when he passed through the port during his second continental tour of 1817. The ferryboat at the center of the image is teeming with life. Its deck overflows with passengers who strain to look overboard as supplies are unloaded from the passing vessels. This combination of intense color and rich detail dazzled critics and led Turner’s fellow artist John Constable to call it “the most complete work of genius I ever saw.” Gallery label for J. M. W. Turner: Romance and Reality (Yale Center for British Art, March - 29, 2025 - July 27, 2025)
