10 months ago
BBC2 Documentary Explores Turner's Secret Sketchbooks
A new BBC2 documentary called 'Turner: The Secret Sketchbooks' looks at the life and work of the famous painter Joseph Mallord William Turner.
The show uses Turner's sketchbooks, which have rarely been seen before, to understand him better.
These sketchbooks include not just his landscape studies but also some personal and even pornographic sketches.
The documentary features different experts who share their thoughts on Turner's work and life.
Some talk about how his difficult childhood might have influenced his art, while others discuss his views on nature and industry.
The show aims to give viewers a fresh look at Turner's art and personality, balancing easy-to-understand insights with deeper analysis.
Turner's mother had mental health issues, and he never saw her again after committing her to a hospital.
The documentary is a mix of fascinating and sometimes controversial insights into the life of this great artist.
BBC2 documentary 'Turner: The Secret Sketchbooks' explores Joseph Mallord William Turner's rarely seen sketchbooks.
Sketchbooks include landscape studies, preliminary compositions, and pornographic sketches.
Experts offer interpretations of Turner's work, including psychoanalyst Orna Guralnik and artist Tracey Emin.
Turner's troubled childhood and his mother's mental health issues are discussed as influences on his art.
The documentary balances accessibility with analytical depth, offering a fresh perspective on Turner's life and work.
- Who
- Joseph Mallord William Turner, a renowned painter
- What
- A BBC2 documentary exploring Turner's secret sketchbooks
- Where
- Broadcast on BBC2
- When
- 250 years after Turner's birth
- Why
- To shed light on Turner's character and artistic process
Key facts
- Artist
- Joseph Mallord William Turner
- Documentary Title
- Turner: The Secret Sketchbooks
- Broadcast Platform
- BBC2
- Documentary Focus
- Turner's sketchbooks, including pornographic sketches
- Turner's Background
- Troubled childhood, mother committed to hospital
- Contributors
- Psychoanalyst Orna Guralnik, Tracey Emin, Chris Packham, Ronnie Wood
- Documentary Style
- Balances accessibility with analytical depth
Quotes
James Jackson
Writer for The Times
“Two hundred and fifty years after his birth, Joseph Mallord William Turner remains an “enigma”, said James Jackson in The Times: “a grunting curmudgeon, an establishment outsider, a visitor of prostitutes”, and an artist whose work “touches the sublime”. This new BBC2 documentary seeks to shed light on Turner’s character through close examination of his rarely seen sketchbooks: not just landscape studies and preliminary compositions that he would later turn into paintings, but also reams of “pornographic sketches”. The result is a show that zips “rather fascinatingly ... in and out of Turner’s id, ego and superego”.”
theweek.com
Roland White
Writer for the Daily Mail
“An eclectic range of contributors offer their interpretations, said Roland White in the Daily Mail. Psychoanalyst Orna Guralnik, for instance, suggests that Turner’s detailed early depictions of buildings represented “a search for stability after a difficult childhood”. His background was indeed troubled: his mother suffered psychotic episodes at a time when madness was believed to run in families. Fearing it would hinder his career, he committed her to a hospital and never saw her again.”
theweek.com
Jack Seale
Writer for The Guardian
“Not all the observations are worthwhile, said Jack Seale in The Guardian. Ronnie Wood, for instance, says of “Fall of the Rhine at Schaffhausen”: “It’s very dramatic.” But Tracey Emin convincingly discusses Turner’s working-class origins, while Chris Packham is highly insightful about Turner’s view of nature, and the effect of industry on it. This programme “balances accessibility with analytical muscle”, allowing us to see the artist “afresh”.”
theweek.com
