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Researchers mark 250 years of Jane Austen and JMW Turner with major new exhibition

Posted on 25 March 2025

Researchers at the University of York are working with Harewood House to shed new light on the social and cultural life of the country house in celebration of 250 years of novelist, Jane Austen, and painter, JMW Turner.

Harewood House first edition of Jane Austen's Sense & Sensibility. Photo Credit: Harewood House

In a major new exhibition, ‘Austen and Turner: A Country House Encounter’, researchers at the University of York’s Centre for Eighteenth Century Studies have helped bring together Jane Austen and JMW Turner's observations and creative interpretations of the country house and their continuing legacies today.

Drawing on their cross-disciplinary expertise in literature, art, history and material culture studies, the University of York team co-curated the exhibition, which included exploring and offering new understanding on items such as the manuscript of Austen’s final, unfinished novel, Sanditon and letters written by Austen to her sister, Cassandra.

Unfinished novel

Austen’s final novel, Sanditon remained unfinished at her death in 1817; on loan from King’s College, Cambridge, it will be shown alongside first editions of earlier works from different collections, including Sense and Sensibility and Mansfield Park.

The York team also provided their expertise to shed light on Turner’s early landscape painting and watercolour sketches from country house drawing rooms, and other loaned artefacts such as an Austen family music manuscript, and a naval sketchbook and journal belonging to two of Austen’s elder brothers, Admiral Sir Francis Austen and Rear Admiral Charles Austen. 

Professor Chloe Wigston Smith, from the University of York’s Centre for Eighteenth Century Studies, said: “Jane Austen and JMW Turner had a fascinating insight into the country house, because they were not part of this aristocratic world, but moved in social circles that permitted access to it, allowing them to have both an inside and outside view of the workings and upkeep of these large homes, their landscapes, and the communities they supported.

“We are particularly excited to feature Sanditon in the exhibition, because it will be the first time Austen’s final, unfinished novel will be on display in the North. The manuscript shows Austen’s writing process on the page. It notably includes the character of Miss Lambe, Austen’s only character described as being of African descent.”

Innovators

Visual artist Lela Harris will produce a new work inspired by the literary world of Jane Austen, and poet and performer Rommi Smith becomes Harewood’s Writer in Residence, reflecting and responding to the themes of the exhibition through poetic form. To accompany the exhibition, Harewood will present an Austen and Turner inspired festival of themed events throughout the year including talks, art workshops, theatre and films.

Professor Jennie Batchelor, from the University of York’s Department of English and Related Literature, said: “Interestingly, Austen knew of the Lascelles family at Harewood. She suggestively named a minor character after the family in her novel Mansfield Park, in which empire and slavery are key and unsettling themes.

“To our knowledge, Austen and Turner never met, but Austen certainly knew Turner’s work. Innovators in their respective fields, Austen and Turner were also linked in a more direct way: Turner’s uncle, Reverend Henry Harpur, oversaw Austen’s father’s first curacy in Shipbourne, Kent.”

Turner's sketchbook

Turner’s paintings of Harewood remain some of the most iconic works in Harewood’s collection. As a young, aspiring artist at the very start of his career, he was invited by the Lascelles family to paint the House and its landscape, producing nine paintings of the house, castle and surrounding landscapes. 

The Harewood paintings will be shown alongside loans from the Tate and Royal Academy, including Turner’s North of England sketchbook, which he used to record views of the Harewood estate, and his hand-made travelling watercolour paint set, in addition to rarely seen paintings and sketches depicting country house interiors and its people.

Dr Richard Johns, from the University of York’s Centre for Eighteenth Century Studies and the Department of History of Art, said: “Jane Austen and JMW Turner are giants in their fields, each inspiring countless books, articles and films. How is it they have not met before? This exhibition delves into what might have happened if they had, offering new insights into the worlds and works of both.”

Festival of events

Harewood will present an Austen and Turner festival of events throughout the year to accompany the exhibition including Pride and Prejudice outdoor theatre, extravagant balls and afternoon teas. Turner-inspired artist-led painting workshops will be held in the ‘Capability’ Brown landscape, and a film festival of Austen-inspired classics - some of which were filmed at Harewood, plus children's arts and outdoor painting activities, and two events at the York Festival of Ideas.

Rebecca Burton, Curator and Archivist, Harewood House Trust said: “People tend to associate Turner with landscapes and Austen with society but we want to challenge that. We’re bringing together a remarkable group of artworks, objects, and manuscripts to draw out new and surprising narratives around their work, exploring how their artistic legacies have framed our understanding of the British country house - its people, interiors and landscapes.” 

‘Austen and Turner: A Country House Encounter’ is at Harewood House from Friday, 2 May to Sunday, 19 October 2025.

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