Kurt Jackson
Revisiting Turner’s Tourism

July 4th – August 18th.
(Galleries 2 – 3)

A touring exhibition in which leading contemporary artist Kurt Jackson walks in the footsteps of JMW Turner to visit the location of his iconic images; to track down the exact viewpoint, to see for oneself how it differs or reflects the source material.

JMW Turner made a series of trips to the South West during the early part of the 19th Century in search of ‘the picturesque’. His goal was to produce works that could then be reproduced and sold to the public.

Locations were chosen based on contemporary popularity as a tourist hotspot. Some were obvious (and perennial) Falmouth, Boscastle, Land’s End – some surprising to the modern eye – Devonport, Launceston. Turner was known to exhibit great artistic licence in making his work. Physical features were moved, skylines raised and lowered, in composing his images; whether for philosophical reasons or simply to make the best composition.

In this exhibition leading contemporary artist Kurt Jackson picked a dozen of these locations to discover the extent of Turner’s artistic choices. Whether a building was ignored, has since been hidden by a development or been obliterated is of interest. A river has maybe been shown to be of immense size or is now banked by concrete, denatured or is just a small stream lost under 200 years of tree growth. Harbour walls and cliffs are exaggerated; wreckage was spilled on beaches where now tourists spread their towels and sun cream.

Jackson visited each of these locations to make his own work in response to both Tuner’s approach and the contemporary lie of the land. Expect an eclectic range of artistic expression spanning painting, poetry, sculpture, installation and film spread throughout the four gallery spaces.

This body of work was previously shown at the Royal Albert Memorial Museum in Exeter in 2016, now with new and previously unseen additions, the exhibition will tour to the Jackson Foundation Gallery, St Just Cornwall from March 24th – April 21st and July 4th – August 18th 2018.

– There is a smartphone app that accompanies this exhibition allowing you to pinpoint Turner’s original locations, view his engravings and explore how contemporary artist Kurt Jackson responded to both the landscape and Turner’s work. The app lets you recreate the artists’ works over the modern day view. Then take your own photos and experience the world as an artist. You can share your creations on social media and via email. Please visit the Apple App Store and search for Jackson Turner. This app is only available for iOS devices and was created for the Royal Albert Memorial Museum & Art Gallery (RAMM). –

Revisiting Turner’s Tourism
March 24th – April 21st 2018.
July 4th – August 18th 2018.
Please check here for seasonal opening times.