by 1788, at the age of 14, j.m.w. turner was apprenticed to an architect as a draftsman. architectural views appeared in his works throughout his life. the next year, turner entered the royal academy of arts school at somerset house. its president, the painter joshua reynolds, endorsed the prevailing view that ranked paintings in a clearly defined hierarchy. history painting was considered the noblest because it could portray events drawn from historical incidents, literature, the bible and mythology. genre painting, scenes from daily life, came next because they also offered examples of virtue to inspire the viewer. then came the more lowly categories of portraiture, landscape and still life, which were disdained as mere transcriptions of the natural world. throughout his career, turner struggled to elevate landscape painting and demonstrate that it could equal history painting in complexity and expressive power. in 1791, turner began a routine he continued for 40 years. after the royal academy's annual exhibitions held in the early summer he traveled in search of subject