The Turner Society was founded in 1975 and has members worldwide. It is devoted to furthering the appreciation and understanding of the art of Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775-1851), who was not only Britain’s greatest painter but arguably the finest landscape and marine painter ever.

Turner was enormously prolific, producing some 550 oil paintings, over 2,000 highly detailed and finely finished watercolours, and some 30,000 works on paper. His bequest to the nation is without doubt the greatest artistic legacy ever bestowed upon the United Kingdom (it is housed in Tate Britain, London, except for a few key works kept at the National Gallery).

The Society regularly mounts lectures and informal talks given by the world’s leading experts on the painter; it organises out-of-hours viewings of important public exhibitions of his work, as well as visits to the Study Room at Tate Britain where the Turner Bequest works on paper are held; and it arranges trips to see private collections that include works by Turner. In addition, it publishes a fine magazine, Turner Society News, which goes to all members twice a year, and it works tirelessly to deepen awareness of the range and power of Turner’s astonishing genius.

“If I could find anything blacker than black I’d use it.”

J.M.W. Turner

BEN STANSALL/AFP/Getty Images

The Turner Society offers a yearly programme of events. These include lectures by leading experts on the artist; visits to the Clore Gallery for the Turner Collection in London; and trips to important private collections not generally open to the public.

Please note these events are only open to members of the Turner Society and their guests. If you wish to become a member click here.

Visit to The Royal Scottish Academy

Visit to The Royal Scottish Academy

The Royal Scottish Academy, Princes Street, Edinburgh
Charlotte Topsfield, the Scottish National Gallery’s Senior Curator in charge of prints and drawings, will host a private, out of hours view (starting at 9 a.m.) of the National Gallery of Ireland’s Turner watercolours from the Vaughan Bequest.
Visit to the Castle Museum and Art Gallery, Norwich

Visit to the Castle Museum and Art Gallery, Norwich

Norwich Castle Museum & Art Gallery, Castle Hill, Norwich, NR1 3JU
A visit to ‘JMW Turner and Changing Visions of Landscape’ with Francesca Vanke, Senior Curator and Keeper of Fine and Decorative Art.
The Kurt Pantzer Memorial Lecture

The Kurt Pantzer Memorial Lecture

The Paul Mellon Centre, 16 Bedford Square, London, WC1B 3JA and live streamed
A Twenty-first-century case for ‘Early Turner’ - Lecture by Professor Leo Costello. While great attention has been paid to Turner’s later career, much less has been given to his early work. This lecture will consider both definitions of and stakes in the concept of ‘Early Turner’.
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