Art / News
Fundraising campaign hopes to bring ‘lost masterpiece’ back to Bristol
More than £18,000 had been raised by midday on Monday as an ambitious fundraising campaign was launched to bring a “lost masterpiece” back to Bristol.
The one-week campaign hopes to raise £100,000 to buy an oil painting of Hotwells and the Avon Gorge painted by JMW Turner in 1792 when he was just 17 years old.
The Rising Squall, Hot Wells, from St Vincent’s Rock, Bristol goes to auction on July 2 at Sotheby’s.
is needed now More than ever
If enough money is raised, it is hoped that Turner’s only oil painting of our city and his first to be featured in an exhibition will be put on permanent display in Bristol Museum & Art Gallery.
No council funding will be used to buy the painting with the campaign the first time the museum has attempted to pull off such a bid.
Turner turned the River Avon next to Hot Wells House into a wild sea in the painting – image: Sotheby’s
Bristol City Council head of culture & creative industries, Philip Walker, said: “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to bring a lost masterpiece back to Bristol, a painting that connects our city to one of the greatest artists in history at a defining moment in his life.
“Turner painted this scene when he was just 17, inspired by the dramatic beauty of the Avon Gorge.
“Now, over two centuries later, we have the chance to bring it home where it can belong to everyone.
“We want this painting to be part of the city’s story, accessible to all and inspiring to future generations.
“We know this is a hugely ambitious fundraising campaign with a ridiculously small window to raise the money, but Bristol is internationally renowned for its art and culture, and we just can’t miss the opportunity to try and go for it.
“It would be an absolute travesty if Bristol’s lost Turner is sold to a private or overseas buyer.”
To find out more and to donate to the campaign, visit www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/bringturnerhome
Main photo: Martin Booth
Read next:
Our newsletters emailed directly to you
