Here stands a testament to one of Britain’s most beloved painters J.M.W. Turner. This blue plaque marks 40 Sandycoombe Road in Twickenham. It commemorates the time J.M.W. Turner spent here. The Greater London Council erected this plaque in 1977.
J.M.W. Turner designed and lived in this house. This ceramic plaque notes that he lived here from 1775 to 1851. However, he only lived here between 1813 and 1826. This was J.M.W. Turner’s country retreat. It is now his only significant residence to survive unaltered.
Born in Covent Garden, J.M.W. Turner entered the Royal Academy Schools at 14. He was soon recognized as an artistic genius. By 1807 J.M.W. Turner had produced acclaimed works such as The Shipwreck. He bought a plot of land in Twickenham for £400.
Over the next five years J.M.W. Turner worked on the design of the house. Construction began in 1812 under his supervision. It was completed early the following year. The finished house featured a large sitting room overlooking the garden. Initially, it was named Solus Lodge. Later it was changed to Sandycombe Lodge.
The house proved to be a place of solitude. J.M.W. Turner and his father could entertain selected friends here. J.M.W. Turner also used it as a base for fishing and sketching trips. He later transformed these sketches of the Thames and the local area into oil paintings and watercolours.
In J.M.W. Turner’s time Sandycombe Lodge was far enough from the city to be considered a country retreat. His main base was in Marylebone. As a successful painter with a professorship at the Royal Academy he could afford both residences. At Sandycombe he entertained friends from the art world. His father William enjoyed working in the garden.
J.M.W. Turner painted many local scenes. Most notably he created the large canvas England Richmond Hill on the Prince Regent’s Birthday in 1819. Yet long tours in England and on the Continent took J.M.W. Turner away from Twickenham a great deal. As early as 1815 he wrote Sandycombe sounds just now in my ears as an act of folly. He reflected on how little he had been able to be there that year. This and other reasons compelled J.M.W. Turner to sell the house in 1826.
J.M.W. Turner died in Chelsea on 19 December 1851 at the age of 76. He is buried in St Paul’s Cathedral. Remember J.M.W. Turner as you pass this spot. He was not only a painter. He was an architect of his own retreat. Sandycombe Lodge stands as a testament to his vision.