Turner’s House

At Sandycombe Lodge our aim has been to create the quiet, domestic space that Turner used as his retreat from the London art world. The architecture of this little building is quirky, reflecting Turner’s own designs but also the influence of his good friend, John Soane, and is worth close attention. Turner made many sketches before arriving at his final design, and these are now brought together in a facsimile sketchbook.

Many rich stories have emerged during our researches into the years Turner spent at Sandycombe, such as those relating to the Napoleonic wars. Some of the beautiful etchings from his Liber Studiorum are on display here, several of them of them responding to those troubled years when England was under threat of invasion, along with beautifully crafted models of ships, variations on those which Turner had here.

In Turner’s time, Sandycombe stood on a large plot of land, bordered by two huge estates. His grounds have now been built over, as have the estates – we have brought back the open views he would have had by digital technology. The small remains of the once-large gardens have now been beautifully planted.

Friends came to Sandycombe, many of them fellow artists, and our ‘speaking clock’ captures their reminiscences. In the basement, domain of Turner’s father, a piece of digital magic brings ‘Old Dad’, housekeeper, gardener and general factotum at Sandycombe, into our space.