Stepping into the Whitworth Gallery’s latest exhibition, Turner: In Light and Shade, the building’s packed with people milling through the exhibition, pushing prams into the little gift shop and standing around chatting quietly about whether they should get a coffee after this. This is probably because I visited the exhibition on the first Saturday after its opening, but it’s also a testament to J.M.W. Turner’s enduring popularity, even 250 years after being born (as the exhibition was staged to mark this anniversary), as one of Britain’s foremost artists.
While Turner is better known for his evocative paintings, some of which are featured, the Whitworth’s exhibition largely exhibits Turner’s landscape prints, the Liber Studorum. Where the majority of Turner’s better-known works simply depict the landscape in all its beauty and ferocity, the prints focus more on quaint illustrations of country life, fit with Bruegel-esque countrymen swarming across the landscape. Some prints are paired with a similar painting, exhibiting each side-by-side, while the rest are exhibited across one long wall at the back of the exhibition space.
The prints are a mixed bunch. They do exhibit Turner’s characteristic emphasis on vibrant landscapes and a delicate use of light, have no visible printing imperfections. Many, however, are twee to the point of being a little sickening. The best of Turner’s works were always concerned with the intensity of nature or industry, and typically expressed themselves best simply by depicting the landscape as is, without any need for humans capering about in the foreground. It’s easy to see why these works are considered less essential than Turner’s paintings, some of which are featured in the exhibition (although none as famous as The Fighting Temeraire).
Nevertheless, this is still an inspired collection of works. Practice sketches are shown alongside the work they were developed into, demonstrating how Turner would materialise vibrant landscapes from mere pencil marks on an empty page. Elsewhere, the Whitworth features the works of those by whom Turner was influenced, and even shows the kinds of tools that would have been used to create the prints shown across the walls. And many of Turner’s more traditional landscape and maritime paintings are exhibited alongside a few of the rare interior paintings he did, all of which I was surprised to find I loved.
Obvious care has been put into curating this exhibition, and these pieces are well worth a look. It’s a shame that the same care has not been given to considering the physical exhibition space. The windowless centre of the building is used for the exhibition, meaning that the gallery is compelled to use artificial lighting. This is, however, poorly implemented, meaning that you’re oftentimes blocked by your own shadow when looking at some of the artwork on show. It’s not a perpetual issue, but it crops up enough times to get frustrating.
Regardless, given that this is a free exhibition and that even Turner’s lesser works are still pretty great, it’s definitely still worth a look. And it’s a low-commitment journey, given that the Whitworth is just off campus.
Turner: In Light and Shade is on exhibition from 7 February – 2 November 2025.
