The Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons, 16 October 1834

A real disaster becomes a near-abstract storm of fire, water, and light.

What to notice

Follow the blazing orange reflection across the Thames and compare it with the tiny boats moving toward the fire.

Discover

Turner witnessed the 1834 fire that destroyed much of Britain’s Parliament. He transformed the event into a dramatic image of human scale overwhelmed by elemental force.