J. M. W. Turner British, 1775 – 1851
Rain, Steam and Speed – The Great Western Railway, 1844
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A steam train charges toward us across Brunel's Maidenhead Railway Bridge over the Thames, its dark engine almost dissolved in rain, mist and golden light. Turner, then nearly seventy, made modern speed itself the subject, building the picture from thin veils of colour and thick palette-knife work. It was first shown at the Royal Academy in 1844.
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A hare races ahead of the train along the track, lower right. On the river at left, a small boat drifts past.
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