William Turner of Oxford (1789–1862), A View of Betchworth Park, Dorking, Looking Toward Reigate
, Watercolor, over graphite, on wove paper, Purchased by some of his friends in memory of John D. Barrett
, 1982.5
William Turner was apprenticed to John Varley and elected an associate of the Old Water-Colour Society at age eighteen. In 1811 he settled in Oxford, where he lived for the rest of his life teaching drawing. His landscapes are generally open, distant views with a smooth, meticulous technique and an almost supernatural stillness.