Tiny watercolour of Sir Walter Scott and his family could be undiscovered Turner
Art historians believe that a postcardsized painting, bought at auction in London, could be a previously unknown work by the artist JMW Turner.
The small watercolour of the author Sir Walter Scott and his family at their Abbotsford home, near Tweedbank in the Borders, is currently on show at an exhibition entitled Turner and Scott: The Painter and the Poet.
It was bought by the Abbotsford Trust after it was discovered in a London auctionhouse by trust members who became intrigued by the possibility that the 5.5in by 3.5in painting could be the work of Joseph Mallard William Turner, created during a visit he made to Abbotsford in the summer of 1831.
The trust is now supporting ongoing research into the painting, with researchers and scientists analysing the work.
It has been subjected to pigment analysis and infrared imaging in an attempt to establish its provenance. If genuine, it might be an early version of another painting of Abbotsford used as the inspiration for an engraving published in Memoirs of the Life of Sir Walter Scott, a commemorative biography published after the writer’s death.
Kirsty Archerthompson, collections and interpretation manager for the trust and curator of the exhibition, said: “This painting is, quite frankly, electric. Everything about it, from the minutiae in the detail and the use of scraping out highlights, to the evolution of its composition from pencil sketch to painting – a whole world only visible through infrared scanning – suggests to me that it is not the work of a copyist.
“All of this analysis, including work by painting analysis expert Libby Sheldon, demonstrates that it was executed by an astonishingly skilled hand.
“Turner was a master of these highly intricate and delicate watercolour illustrations, two of which are already owned by the Abbotsford Trust.
“Everything about this little painting feels authentic and consistent with the great man. I hope that we can prove the theory with the help and support of enthusiasts and experts in the art world.”
“We know that when Turner stayed here at Abbotsford in August 1831, Scott was keen to point out particular artworks in his collection. One of the paintings Turner would most definitely have seen is a view of Abbotsford and the River Tweed by the Scottish artist Elizabeth Nasmyth. This painting is from exactly the same vantage point as the watercolour we believe Turner painted. Scott had a personal attachment to the Nasmyth painting and its composition, and my theory is that this gave Turner the idea to compose the same scene, which he based on sketches in the Abbotsford sketchbook used during his visit in 1831.”
Trust chairman James Holloway, a former director of the Scottish National Portrait Gallery in Edinburgh, added: “It is wonderful for Abbots ford to be able to show such a fascinating painting. It will intrigue and delight our visitors. To think that we are publicly displaying the watercolour for the very first time since it was painted by Turner is also tremendously exciting.”
If the painting is authenticated as a Turner, it will be worth millions. In 2014, one of the last great Turner masterpieces remaining in private hands set a world auction record when it sold for £30.3 million.
“This painting is, quite frankly, electric. Everything about it... suggests to me that it is not the work of a copyist” KIRSTY ARCHER-THOMPSON Abbotsford Trust