Great Yarmouth bridges exhibition has JMW Turner masterpiece

Exploring how bridges – physical and symbolic – have inspired artists from Norfolk and elsewhere, the exhibition features an early masterpiece by JMW Turner.

Crossings, Constructions and Connections: JMW Turner and Bridges Old and New is now being exhibited at the Time and Tide Museum of Great Yarmouth Life until February 25.

An early oil painting, Walton Bridges - which was painted by Turner in 1806 and acquired for Norfolk Museums in 2019 with the help of The National Lottery Heritage Fund and the Art Fund - is the centrepiece.

The view above the chainbridge over the River Dee near Llangollen in Llantisilio, 1820s, Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775-1851), Watercolour on paper. Picture: Norfolk Museums Service (Image: Norfolk Museums Service)

Four other works by Turner are also displayed - two watercolours, an engraving and a pencil sketch, all featuring bridges.

With the exhibition exploring the significance of bridge artists such as John Sell Cotman, John Berney Crome, John Thirtle, Catherine Nichols and renowned Norfolk artist Edward Seago all feature.

Porcelain Loving cup with image of the Iron Bridge, c1820s, Coalport factory, Shropshire. Picture: Norfolk Museums Service (Image: Norfolk Museums Service)

It also includes a range of memorabilia showing how the opening of a new bridge is an occasion for commemoration and celebration.

With the exhibition's location in Great Yarmouth particularly timely as the town looks forward to the opening of The Herring Bridge, the exhibition also looks at the importance of bridges to the town.

The Suspension Bridge Disaster at Great Yarmouth, 1845, Cornelius J. W. Winter (1817-1891), Oil on canvas. Picture: Norfolk Museums Service (Image: Norfolk Museums Service)

Vauxhall Bridge, Great Yarmouth, 2023. Picture: Simon Watson Photography (Image: Simon Watson Photography)

After an unexploded bomb and the discovery of a vole burrow delayed The Herring Bridge opening, more work is needed on the new £121m bridge - with an opening date still to be confirmed.

Norfolk County Council cabinet member for communities, Margaret Dewsbury, said: "The acquisition of Walton Bridges in 2019 was significant not just for Norfolk Museums Service, but for the region as it is the only Turner oil painting now in public ownership in Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex.

"Thanks to the support of The National Lottery Heritage Fund and Art Fund, we’re proud to be able to present this wonderful painting in Great Yarmouth as the centrepiece of this fascinating exhibition at an important moment in the town’s development."