Turner exhibition opens in Brighton

An exhibition of paintings and drawings by JMW Turner and his contemporaries has opened at the Royal Pavilion in Brighton.

The focus of the exhibition, which opened yesterday (Saturday 2 November), is a Turner watercolour called Brighthelmston, Sussex.

It was bought last year by the Royal Pavilion and Museums service, part of Brighton and Hove City Council.

The watercolour had been in private ownership for more than a century until it was sold at auction at Christie’s in New York in January last year for $338,500 or about £210,000.

The council said that it was bought with funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund, the Art Fund and the Royal Pavilion and Museums Foundation – at no cost to the council.

Brighthelmston, Sussex, by JMW Turner

It was shown briefly last year immediately after the purchase. But it is believed that this will be the first time that the watercolour, painted in 1824, has been shown alongside other work by Turner.

The exhibition includes watercolours, oil paintings, drawings, sketchbooks, and prints by Turner along with works by John Constable, William Daniell and Pavilion architect John Nash.

It shows Brighton’s development as a seaside resort through their eyes.

On Friday (1 November) part of the exterior of the Royal Pavilion was lit up from 6pm to 10pm.

The lighting and projections, by the digital art duo SDNA, were laid on to celebrate the opening of the Turner in Brighton exhibition.

It included designs created by a group of students at Dorothy Stringer High School in Brighton as part of an art project with the Royal Pavilion and Museums.

The exhibition is open daily from 10am to 5.15pm until Sunday 2 March and entry is included in the price of an admission ticket to the Royal Pavilion.

It costs £10.50 for adults and £5.90 for children.

Entry is half price – £5.25 – for Brighton and Hove residents with proof of address, such as a council tax or utility bill, with up to four children admitted free.