A weekend with JMW Turner in Margate, Kent

http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2014/sep/10/weekend-break-jmw-turner-margate-kent

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This autumn, the artist JMW Turner will hit the headlines as Tate Britain launches a blockbuster exhibition of his magnificent late paintings, and director Mike Leigh releases the biopic that won the best actor award for Timothy Spall at Cannes. Arguably Britain’s greatest painter, hailed as “the father of modern art” by the critic John Ruskin, Turner lived an eccentric and restless life – and was inspired in many ways by the seaside town of Margate.

This unlikely setting is where he first saw the sea – subject of his greatest works. He was sent to school here from London at the age of 11. Then, it was a fashionable Regency resort from which he later embarked for the continent in search of Romantic scenes to paint. He visited regularly from the 1820s, attracted by its vistas of sky and sea, and by a secret liaison with his guesthouse landlady.

“The skies over Thanet are the loveliest in all Europe,” he wrote of the area around Margate, where he painted more than 100 oils and watercolours. The Isle of Thanet is a pancake-flat semi-island jutting into the North Sea and is surrounded by water on three sides. So it has vast skies and dramatic light: perfect for his art and still a thrill for the visitor today.

Now the local council has seized on the artistic heritage of this town, which is becoming a quirky, arty haven and weekend-getaway destination, just 90 minutes from London on a new, fast train. Its waterfront is still lined with amusement arcades and trinket shops, its lovely beach dense with deckchairs, but the old centre is now crammed with a fresh wave of organic cafes, independent galleries and vintage stores that bring a style all of their own.

And, if you want to make a great weekend break in Turner’s town, then picture this …

Turner Contemporary

Margate’s homage to Turner is this beautiful gallery beside the harbour, the largest contemporary art space in south-east England. Created by architect David Chipperfield in 2011, its minimalist white cubes stand on the site of the guesthouse where Turner used to stay. He loved the views of sea and sky from the windows of that house – and also the attentions of its landlady, a sailor’s widow called Sophia Booth. For 20 years they were companions, finally living together in Chelsea, where he adopted the name of Admiral Booth to avoid a scandal. Current exhibitions include the works of radical potter Edmund de Waal (until February 2015), author of The Hare With Amber Eyes.• turnercontemporary.org. Open Tues-Sun and bank holidays 10am-6pm. Free

Margate sands

Turner painted this scene many times and in all weathers – storms crashing across the jetties, people strolling on the coral-pink sand – but today it’s a picture postcard of the great British seaside holiday. Families picnic between games of crazy golf or volleyball, bathers brave the shallows, children splash in the saltwater lido. One end of the waterfront is all bleeping arcades; the other is a Victorian crescent lined with handsome balconies and great little shops – such as Peter’s Fish Factory (96 Harbour Parade) for excellent whitebait and chips; Hunky Dory (24 High Street), for astonishing bric-a-brac under the slogan “Retro Goodness Vintage Cool”; and GB Pizza Co (14a Marine Drive), with its wood-fired oven. The star attraction is Morgan’s Vintage Dance Hall (46 High Street) offering dance lessons from swing to samba and a Saturday night party with punters clad in 1940s gear, all two-tone shoes, A-line dresses and Aloha shirts.

Dreamland

First opened in 1936, the much-loved Dreamland amusement park by the beach is closed for refurbishment (by Wayne Hemingway) until 2015. But one room has been kept open and features a charming array of games from years gone by: miniature tenpin bowling with the pins on tiny strings, table football where miniature players whizz along grooves in a green felt board, a basketball pitch where a paper ball is powered by jets of air … It’s a blast from the pre-digital past and utterly delightful. • dreamlandmargate.com

The Old Town

The retro tone is everywhere in the Georgian streets, a gull’s cry back from the beach. Lovers of clothes, furniture, comics or even toys from the postwar era will find much to buy in the specialist shops here. But there is plenty of art too. Darkissed Dayze (5 High Street) is a hardcore graffiti store with a dazzling range of spray-can paints for the modern-day Turner in us all. Maxine Sutton (2 Market Place) is a textile designer with a striking line in blocky, pretty printed fabrics. And Qing (7 Market Place) is an Aladdin’s cave of Chinese furniture and jewellery, selected and imported by owner Anne-Marie Nixey who used to live in Beijing. Mainstream art is on show in the serious galleries scattered between the boutiques, notably Margate Gallery (2 Lombard Street) and the Pie Factory (7 Broad Street) – the latter a warren of bare brick and radical art that wouldn’t look out of place in Hoxton.

Great British nosh

The old town has more than its share of great cafes, especially on the charming old Market Place, where tables jostle between trees and retro stores. Here is The Cupcake Café, a pastel-painted dream of baking at its best, buzzing with families and offering courses in making cakes, bread and even chocolates. Nearby is the eccentric Mad Hatter’s Tea Rooms (9 Lombard Street), a shrine to vintage. Its ground floor is decorated only in yellow, its first floor only in red; there’s Cole Porter on the gramophone and the Hatter himself serving in full costume. More normal surroundings can be found in the excellent Lifeboat Ale And Cider House (1 Market Street), an old bare-floorboard place with a big brick hearth and ale kegs stacked down the middle.

The Ambrette

The finest dining experience in town is this Michelin-listed Indian fusion restaurant, voted best restaurant in Kent last year, and any visit to Margate should include a leisurely hour or three here. The food is exceptional: an exquisite blend of classic Indian dishes reimagined for today, and European dishes infused with the heat of India. The latter include rhubarb and star anise crumble; the former soft-shell crab tempura with beetroot cake.• 44 King Street, 01843 231504, theambrette.co.uk, two courses from £16

The Sands Hotel

The newest hotel on the waterfront, this small and stylish independent is the best place to stay on the beach. Bang opposite the finest stretch of sand, its rooms and restaurant have panoramic views of the coast. The style is art-deco seaside, sprinkled with vibrant paintings inspired by Turner himself. The restaurant has a contemporary menu based on local fish and farm produce, and mellow jazz nights on the first Thursday of each month. Downstairs is an ice-cream parlour called Melt, where the ice-creams are made by hand each day.• 01843 228228, sandshotelmargate.co.uk. Doubles from £120

Reculver church

Back on the Turner trail, there’s a lovely walk from the edge of town at Birchington to the abandoned Saxon monastery of Reculver, which the great man painted in a watercolour in 1796. You can cycle this route, too: hire bikes from Viking Coastal Trail Cycle Hire (07772 037609, The Parade, Minnis Bay) at the start of the route. It’s an easy 3.5 miles along a path by the sea, ending at the dramatic ruins of two ancient towers that can clearly be seen in Turner’s sketch. On the return leg, hungry trippers can pause at the homely Minnis Bar , also on The Parade in Birchington; it’s celebrated locally for home-smoked meats and fish, while its views west across Herne Bay as the sun slowly sets between swirling clouds are genuinely Turneresque.

• The EY Exhibition: Late Turner, Painting Set Free (tate.org.uk) is at Tate Britain from 10 September 2014–25 January 2015 ( adults £16.50, concessions £14.50). Mike Leigh’s Mr Turner is on general release from 31 October