J.M.W. Turner — subject of the film Mr. Turner — painted this view over the Thames from the top of Richmond Hill, in southwest London, quite a few times. The view hasn’t changed much in almost 200 years (this example is in the Tate collection):
(Click here for a larger version of my photo, and here for a larger version of Turner’s painting.)
I bet the view when you turn around hasn’t changed all that much either:
That’s lovely. I wonder if the two trees framing the river in your photo are the same trees framing it in the painting. (Are they the kind of tree that can live that long?) If so, it’s awesome to see how big they’ve grown, and to think of how much they’ve lived through.
I have no idea about the trees, but it’s a nice thought, isn’t it?
I love JMW Turner’s paintings so much! On our second day in London in 2012, I dragged my mom to the Tate Gallery just so we could go to the Clore Gallery. She wasn’t as thrilled as I was to see them, but she enjoyed them nonetheless.