Overview

Clare Gough, Director of Sir John Soane’s Pitzhanger Manor & Gallery, and Matthew Morgan, Director of Turner’s House, Twickenham, will explore the intertwined history of two important artists’ residences. The talk will investigate the close relationship between Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775-1851) and his friend and fellow fisherman, the architect Sir John Soane (1753-1837). It looks specifically at Soane’s fascination for classical architecture, materialised in his country villa Pitzhanger Manor, built in the then rural village of Ealing, and how Soane’s architectural style influenced Turner’s design for his suburban retreat at Twickenham, helping to define its appearance and implied associations.

Turner was a regular guest at Pitzhanger and Soane, in turn, influenced Turner’s designs for his country house, Sandycombe Lodge. The two men bonded over their fascination with light, the role of the classics in art and their love of fishing.