Nicola Moorby – författare

Born just fourteen months apart, one in London and the other in rural Suffolk, J. M. W. Turner and John Constable went on to change the face of British art  The two men have routinely been seen as polar opposites, not least by their peers. Differing in temperament, background, beliefs, and vision, they created images as dissimilar as their personalities.  Yet in many ways they were fellow travellers. As children of the late eighteenth century, both faced the same challenges and opportunities. Above all, they shared common cause as champions of a distinctively British art. Through their work, they fought for the recognition and appreciation of landscape painting—and in doing so ensured their reputations were forever intertwined and interlinked.  Nicola Moorby offers us a fresh perspective on two extraordinary artists, uncovering the layers of fiction that have embellished and disguised their greatest achievements. For Turner & Constable is not just a tale of two artists; it is also the story of the triumph of landscape painting.

J.M.W. Turner is one of the most influential and important British artists of all time. His watercolours, with their extraordinary effects of shifting light and dramatic cloudscapes, are especially highly regarded. This book reveals the secrets of his technique for the first time, allowing watercolourists to try them out for themselves.For the first time, this book reveals the secrets of Turner's technique, allowing present-day watercolourists to try them out themselves. There is an accessible introduction that explores Turner's life and career and the materials he used to achieve the masterpieces we know and love today. The book then goes on to list the modern materials the twenty-first century watercolourist will need if they aspire to take on similar subject matter. Successive chapters look at a particular theme, such as Sky, Water, Trees, Buildings, People, Animals, Sunrise, Moonlight and Fire, illustrating each with one of Turner's works. Expert contemporary watercolour artists then explain, step-by-step, how to paint a version of that particular picture and how to use the techniques learnt to paint other compositions. With a glossary of technical terms, high quality colour reproductions and backed by the authority of Tate, the world centre for Turner scholarship, this is a must-buy purchase for all lovers of J.M.W. Turner and of watercolour painting.