High Street, Oxford (painting)

High Street, Oxford

Artist	J. M. W. Turner
Year	1810
Medium	Oil on canvas
Dimensions	68.5 cm × 100.3 cm (27.0 in × 39.5 in)
Location	Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, England

A similar view to the painting in the late 1890s.

High Street, Oxford is an oil painting by J. M. W. Turner that was exhibited in 1810.^[1]

The painting shows a view looking west along the High Street, a major street in central Oxford, England, with University College on the left, All Souls College on the right, and the spires of All Saints Church (now the library of Lincoln College, centre) and St Mary's Church (the University church, centre right). In the distance is the tower of St Martin's Church (marking the centre of Oxford, now known as Carfax Tower since the rest of the church has been demolished).

Originally, the painting was commissioned by James Wyatt. He intended to have it engraved and sold as a print at his shop, located at 115 High Street in Oxford.^[2]

The painting is now exhibited at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford.^[3] In 2015, there was a campaign to raise money for the purchase of the picture (estimated value £3.5 million) since previously it was on long-term loan to the museum from a private collection since 1997.^[4] It was left to the nation in lieu of death duties. The painting was acquired using grants of £550,000 from the UK Heritage Lottery Fund, £220,000 from the UK Art Fund, and £30,000 from the Friends and Patrons of the Ashmolean Museum.^[5]

References

1. "High Street, Oxford". Tate. UK. Retrieved 8 August 2015.
2. "The High by Turner". www.oxfordhistory.org.uk. UK: Oxford History. Retrieved 8 August 2015.
3. "Turner's Oxford". Ashmolean Museum. UK. Retrieved 8 August 2015.
4. Brown, Mark (7 July 2015). "Turner painting to remain in Oxford after fundraising campaign". The Guardian. UK.
5. "Turner Oxford painting bought by Ashmolean Museum". BBC News. UK: BBC. 7 July 2015.