Van Tromp, Going About to Please His Masters 

Editor: This is "Van Tromp, Going About to Please His Masters" by Turner; it seems to be an oil painting. All this churning sea and sky...it feels incredibly turbulent and energetic. What do you see in it? Curator: Well, I’m immediately drawn to the sheer materiality of it all. Look at how Turner manipulates the oil paint—the brushstrokes themselves become almost tangible waves. It’s less about a realistic depiction of the sea, and more about the *process* of its making. Editor: So, you are focusing more on the materiality than, say, any symbolism? Curator: Absolutely. The “masters” in the title, and indeed, Van Tromp himself – are less important than understanding what Turner is doing with the oil paint. How is he consuming and transforming the raw materials to create this effect of chaotic movement? Is he showing us something about the raw force of capitalism in its industrial processes through his art? What would a close examination of the paints he used reveal to us about consumption of raw materials at the time? Editor: Interesting. I never really thought of landscape paintings as documents of resource consumption, but I get what you are saying...How even his brushstrokes contribute to that perspective! Curator: Consider this – what labour was required to both harvest those raw materials and create them as useable artist’s pigments and oils? Editor: Okay, that’s given me a totally new perspective on Turner – thinking about the painting as evidence of 19th century resource consumption, not just, you know, a pretty picture of a seascape. Thanks! Curator: Precisely. And I’m delighted you’re considering the materiality of this seascape within its broader historical framework.