Jonathan Trew: ‘Erotic prints by Turner are part of the show ‘

Jonathan Trew

In Edinburgh, Turner is perhaps best known for his delicate watercolours which, for the last 110 years, have been shown during January in the city. Emin is famous for her intensely personal installations such as My Bed, the work in which empty bottles and stained sheets were a very literal representation of a chaotic period in her life.

However, works by both Turner and Auguste Rodin are part of a forthcoming Emin exhibition at the Turner Contemporary in Margate where Emin grew up. The show is called Tracey Emin – She Lay Down Deep Beneath the Sea, and it looks at the themes of love, sex and romanticism in Emin’s work. Erotic prints by Turner are part of the show.

It’s not news that Turner was interested in sexuality and art. For years, it was falsely claimed that his friend John Ruskin burnt most of his erotic drawings and paintings to protect Turner’s posthumous reputation. Some of the supposedly destroyed works form part of the forthcoming Emin exhibition.

At the present time, there doesn’t seem to be any move towards showing She Lay Down Beneath the Sea in Scotland but, for those who make an annual January visit to see Turner’s watercolours in the National Gallery, it’s interesting to think that there was another probably unsuspected side to the man’s art.

While not going for quite as long as the Vaughan Bequest Turner show, Raymond Gubbay’s Johann Strauss Gala shows, complete with costumed dancers, have played a popular part in many people’s Januarys for years. The show waltzes into Glasgow’s Royal Concert Hall today and Edinburgh’s Usher Hall tomorrow evening.

Leaving aside the Victorians, this weekend’s other big show is Back For Good, the Take That tribute which might possibly end up having the same longevity as Turner’s January show.

www.nationalgalleries.org; www.raymondgubbay.co.uk; www.backforgoodshow.com