The Chain Pier by J M W Turner
The Royal Pavilion & Museums have successfully bid for the watercolour, The Chain Pier at Brighton, at an auction at Christie's in New York.
The painting was purchased for $352,500 (£225,000). A significant grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) helped secure the picture for the city and the nation; along with an award from the Art Fund, the national fundraising charity for art, and a donation from the Royal Pavilion & Museums Foundation, a registered charity that raises funds to support the Royal Pavilion & Museums.
Once the painting is brought back to Brighton, it will be placed on display in the Royal Pavilion for a short period. Following this, in 2013, the watercolour will be the centrepiece in a new temporary exhibition at the Royal Pavilion. The exhibition will explore the town’s development in the early 19th century and the important relationship played by the Pavilion in Brighton’s development. It will also explore the changing relationship Brighton has had with the sea: from its humble beginnings as a fishing town to its fashionable status under George IV as a seaside resort and latterly as a tourist attraction.
That's just lovely. It is such a dramatic picture.
ReplyDeleteJust like my trips on the old speed boat off the West Pier.