Bring Turner Home

Aim: We have one week to bring Turner’s Bristol masterpiece home to Bristol

Bring Turner Home is a one-week public fundraising appeal to acquire The Rising Squall, Hot Wells from St Vincent’s Rock, Bristol (1792), the earliest-known oil painting ever exhibited by JMW Turner and is believed to be the only oil painting he made of a Bristol scene. Help us return it to public ownership in Bristol.

We set out to raise £100,000 and we are so delighted that the people of Bristol and beyond have helped us get there. We are still accepting donations as every single pound we raise increases our chances of success at auction. There is still time to be part of something historic and help secure a lost masterpiece by one of Britain’s greatest artists and bring it home where it belongs.

Painted in Bristol when Turner was just 17, The Rising Squall is his only known oil painting of the city and the first oil he ever exhibited, shown at the Royal Academy in 1793.

Recently rediscovered after more than 150 years, the painting goes to auction on 2 July. Bristol Museum & Art Gallery is believed to be the only public institution bidding and this is the first time we have launched a public campaign like this.

No council funds will be used. Instead, the museum is launching a one-week Crowdfunder campaign to raise £100,000 or more. If successful, the painting will join the collection at Bristol Museum & Art Gallery, where it will be freely accessible to the public and serve as a focal point for education, storytelling, and civic pride. If unsuccessful at auction all donations made via Crowdfunder will be refunded.

Photo Credit: The Rising Squall, Hot Wells, from St. Vincent’s Rock, Bristol. Photograph: Sotheby’s

This project closed unsuccessfully on 3rd July 2025