A lthough he died in the Victorian era, J. Turner was very much a Georgian. Born in at the height of the enlightenment, Turner lived through a time of great social and industrial change. And Turner was just as controversial, just as revolutionary, just as original, just as much of a genius as any of his contemporaries. And if genius is thought to be tinged with madness, then so was Turner. I hope I do. Turner was acutely sensitive to these attacks; but Punch cared little for that.
Some even thought Turner mad. The implication that Turner was mentally unsound was not confined to his old age. Many artists are sensitive to criticism of course, Turner is not unique in this.
But what brought tears to his eyes may not have been entirely to do with his art, but the accusation of madness. It was not generally known that his mother was mad, but it was rumoured, during his lifetime. In fact, Mary Turner was admitted to St. A patron of the arts and amateur artist in his own right, Monro encouraged and to some extent mentored the young artist.
He was also the chief physician at Bedlam. And then with Monro to get his mother committed to Bedlam, as she appears to have met none of the qualifications. How did the son of a Covent Garden barber and perruquier gain such powerful and influential friends?
Surely there must have been something about the young Turner that made him acceptable , in a social sense, beyond mere artistic talent. He is said to have been incomprehensible and muddle-headed when giving lectures when he was professor of perspective at the Royal Academy. And he offended Victorian sensibilities even after his death, when his erotic drawings came to light.
