Description
Flames engulf the Houses of Parliament and reach into the sky in Turner’s painting of the London fire. Their light spreads across the Thames, while boats near the lower right head toward the blaze. The wide body of water separates the viewer from the burning buildings even as its reflected brightness brings the spectacle into the foreground.
Painted in 1835 in oil on canvas, the work records the fire of October 16, 1834, from a viewpoint downriver on the southeast bank. Turner magnified the flames rather than making a neutral record of the event, turning the disaster into a powerful encounter with light and atmosphere. This Cleveland version differs from his other painting of the fire. Its force lies in the spread of color across sky and river, where destruction becomes an overwhelming visual presence.
Read our guide to giclée prints, browse the Turner collection, or explore View of London from Greenwich.
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