Turner 's Fountain of Fallacy, oil on canvas, exhibited British Institution 1839 ( Wilton P376), probably the same as The fountain of Indolence, oil on canvas, exhibited Royal Academy 1834, Beaverbrook Foundation, Fredericton, New Brunswick ( Wilton P354). The picture exhibited in 1839 was accompanied in the catalogue by an extract from Turner's poem Fallacies of Hope. The fountain of Indolence has at its centre 'some fairy waterworks.'
J.M.W. Turner 1775-1851
Fountain of Fallacy 1839
Oil on canvas, 101.5x162.5cm
Exhibitions: BI 1839 (58)
Provenance: William Marshall of Eaton Square (?)
Further Comments: The work's history after the exhibition is unknown, but one popular theory is that the 'The Fountain of Fallacy' is identical with 'The Fountain of Indolence' which was exhibited in 1834, and is also in the Beaverbrook Art Gallery.
Collection: Beaverbrook Art Gallery, Frederiction, New Brunswick (?)
For a reproduction of this artistic work, please consult: Gage, John, J.M.W. Turner: A Wonderful Range of Mind, (Yale University Press, 1987), p.226