111. Slave Ship

 

Slave Ship (Slavers Throwing Overboard the Dead and Dying, Typhoon Coming On) Joseph Mallord William Turner. 1840 C.E. England. Oil on canvas Slave Ship is a perfect example of a romantic landscape painting. His style is expressed more through dramatic emotion, sometimes taking advantage of the imagination. Instead of carefully observing and portraying nature, William Turner took a landscape of a stormy sea and turned it into a scene with roaring and tumultuous waves that seem to destroy everything in its path. Turner's aims were to take unique aspects of nature and find a way to   Description: Joseph Mallord William Turner, Slave Ship (Slavers Throwing Overboard the  Dead and Dying, Typhoon Coming On), 1840 (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston)

Content: A ship (slave ship) sailing directly into a storm, abandoning the slaves that were thrown overboard to drown Fiery sunset, writhing foam and waves Fish with teeth chomping at the slaves' chained limbs A wall of water and grey clouds dooming the ship to shipwreck (as punishment and vengeance for the death of slaves; upsetting of the balance of nature)  "Turner's chaotic canvas shows a fierce storm. Body parts, still shackled and being attacked by sharp-teethed fish, can be seen in the central and right foreground." (Gateways, p. 544)

Context: J.M.W. Turner (1775 - 1851) Twenty or so years before Impressionist movement; Turner uses techniques that are not yet popular Man vs. nature (popular theme during late 1700s and early 1800s Slavery was banned in Britain, but not in some of the countries it had colonized (e.g. the United States of America)

Form:  Abstract, fabricated quality Makes it difficult to discern the subject matter and the action of the scene "Turner uses intense colors and turbulent brushstrokes to convey the heightened emotion of the event." (Gateways, p. 544)

Function: Wanted to protest any reconsideration on the subject Prevent slavery from ever becoming a normalized practice in the future with a harsh reminder To shock the critics and general audience into seeing just how brutal slavery could be, and why it shouldn't ever come back Tell a story Moral of the story being you are morally condemned if you participate in such a horrific, dehumanizing practice  Slave ship is doomed to wreck because of the actions of its captain  'Communicate sympathy and judgment'

Khanacademy:

• Video - https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-art-history/later-europe-and-americas/enlightenment-revolution/v/turner-slave-ship-slavers-throwing-overboard-the-dead-and-dying-typhoon-coming-on-1840
• Critical analysis - http://www.victorianweb.org/art/crisis/crisis4e.html

Entry from Gateways (p. 544-545):

• "A couple of decades later, the British painter J.M.W. Turner (1775 - 1851) created a painting that also condemned the slave trade. Although slavery was illegal by this time throughout Britain, Turner was highlighting the injustice of the slave trade and protesting against any consideration of its renewal. His dramatic canvas portrays an infamous incident aboard the slave ship Zong in 1781. It was common practice for slave-ship captains to fill their vessels with more slaves than they would need, knowing that disease might spread amongst them. The captain of the Zong knew that he would be paid for any slaves lost as sea, but not for those who were sick when they arrived. He therefore had sick slaves thrown overboard while still far from land."