Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Collection
Copyright Status:
Public Domain
Accession Number:
B1978.43.14
Gallery Label:
This mesmerizing painting shows the Hebridean island of Staffa, off the west coast of Scotland, famed for its unique geology and associations with the mythic Gaelic hero Fingal. As with so many of his most ambitious paintings, however, Turner’s vision transcends the specific topographical details of the scene to convey an intensely human experience. The artist had journeyed to the site in 1831, and his painting dramatizes the moment when, in his own words, “the sun getting towards the horizon, burst through the raincloud, angry.” The dramatic composition, with its complex array of formal and thematic oppositions — the natural and the artificial, warm and cool tones, light and dark — exemplifies Turner’s emotional range, technical brilliance, and stylistic innovation. It is these qualities that have ensured his lasting reputation. One of his most powerful and enduring works, Staffa was also the first of the artist’s paintings to enter an American collection, having been bought for the New York collector James Lennox in 1845. Gallery label for J. M. W. Turner: Romance and Reality (Yale Center for British Art, March - 29, 2025 - July 27, 2025)
