MODERN MAN

J.M.W. Turner is often spoken of as “modern” before the fact, because he seemed to flirt with abstraction, especially in his late works. But there’s another reason why the early-19th-century English painter could be considered modern, one which has little or nothing to do with the stylistic innovations he made: Turner was actively engaged with the politics and technology of his time. Far from being a dreamy Romantic immersed in a timeless landscape, he was fascinated by the rapid changes that were occurring in British society, changes that presaged the industrial and sociopolitical revolutions that shaped the world we now live in.

We’ve always known that Turner was a savvy businessman who was acutely conscious of current market forces. Now we are being made aware of the degree of Turner’s interest in current affairs and how it affected his art, thanks to an extremely thought-provoking exhibition organized by Tate Britain in London and currently at the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth, Texas. “Turner’s Modern World,” on view through February 6, brings together