John Doman Turner

Wendy Baron, an independent scholar and former Director of the Government Art Collection, and author of numerous texts on Walter Sickert and the Camden Town Group recently published an article on website Art UK, in her search to find more info about Walter Sicker’s pupils –

https://artuk.org/discover/stories/in-search-of-sickerts-pupils

In Baron’s latest article, she writes that in July 1913, the Carfax Gallery in Bury Street, St James’s, held an exhibition of ‘Paintings, Drawings and Etchings by Past and Present Pupils of Mr Sickert’. 101 works by 28 artists were included in the ‘Pupils’ exhibition, two of whom were members of the Camden Town Group: 

Malcolm Drummond exhibited Chestnut Leaves, a painting he had shown with the Camden Town Group in December 1912; 

John Doman Turner showed Walberswick, probably the drawing he had shown with the Camden Town Group in December 1911.

Through our research, and after reading the written correspondence between Spencer Gore and John Doman Turner in 1908 – 1913, we can confirm that it was Gore who recommended Turner to attend Walter Sicker’s evening classes at Westminster School of Art in 1908.

“Sickert is teaching two nights a week at Westiminster School of Art. I advise you to go if you can manage it. I think he begins on 21 Sept.”

Letter from Spencer Gore to John Doman Turner (Tate/Private collection – Gore Estate) – 1908