Dovecot Studios, Edinburgh | Now until 28 June 2025
A bold new exhibition is illuminating Edinburgh this spring as Dovecot Studios, in collaboration with the Fleming Collection, presents The Scottish Colourists: Radical Perspectives. This vibrant show reimagines the legacy of Scotland’s most iconic modern painters – SJ Peploe, JD Fergusson, GL Hunter, and FCB Cadell – by placing them shoulder to shoulder with their radical European and British contemporaries.
While the Scottish Colourists are typically shown as a distinct quartet, this landmark exhibition breaks new ground by exploring their shared creative language with artists like Matisse, Derain, and members of the Bloomsbury Group, offering a richer and more nuanced view of how colour revolutionised modern art in the early 20th century.
Visitors can expect an extraordinary range of work on loan from major national institutions – including Derain’s explosive Pool of London from Tate – alongside rare paintings by Vanessa Bell, Duncan Grant, and Walter Sickert. There’s even a fascinating ‘Celtic’ twist, as the exhibition draws connections between the Colourists and colour-rich responses by Augustus John, John Dickson Innes, and Roderick O’Conor.
Spanning the period from 1905 through the First World War and into the 1930s, the show traces how Cubism and Vorticism influenced these artists’ evolving styles. It culminates in the Colourists’ emergence as a defined group, united by their flair for painting still lifes, landscapes, and interiors, suffused with the vivid palette of French art and the unique quality of Scottish light.
James Knox, curator of the Fleming Collection, describes it as a momentous opportunity:
“This exhibition will, for the very first time, shine the spotlight on the radical Scots and their contemporaries, allowing us to truly assess their achievements and place in the history of early European modernism.”
Celia Joicey, Director of Dovecot Studios, adds:
“Presenting the Scottish Colourists at the vanguard of the creative avant-garde in the UK is an opportunity to recast Scotland’s pivotal role in the history of early 20th century art.”
The main gallery show will be joined from March 2025 by a complementary series of displays in the Dovecot Balcony Gallery, showcasing contemporary Scottish artists who are continuing to push boundaries through bold uses of colour – in media from watercolour and oil to textiles and wood.
Dovecot itself is a fitting venue – a historic tapestry studio and a thriving hub for contemporary art, design and craft, all housed in a beautifully converted Victorian bathhouse just a short walk from Waverley Station.
Essential Info:
️ The Scottish Colourists: Radical Perspectives
Dovecot Studios, 10 Infirmary Street, Edinburgh EH1 1LT
Now until 28 June 2025
️ Tickets: £12 (£10.50 concessions)
Book online at dovecotstudios.com
10-minute walk from Edinburgh Waverley Station
Don’t miss this rare chance to see the Scottish Colourists in vivid new light – right here in the heart of Edinburgh.
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