One hundred years on from their first group show, the Scottish Colourists (composed of Samuel John Peploe, Francis Campbell Boileau Cadell, George Leslie Hunter and John Duncan Fergusson) are on display, side by side once more, in the very city where they lived and trained. Bound together by their love of the French impressionists and fauvists, which manifests itself in bold use of colour and animated, visible brush strokes, Dovecot’s exhibition successfully positions this quartet within the wider European post-impressionist movement. 

Peploe and Fergusson positively stand out, the quality of their work showing the kind of masterful technique and singular style you’d expect from internationally canonised names. Their vibrant still lifes, landscapes and portraits ooze with pleasing colours and textures, acting as an invigorating endorphin generator against the cool-toned bleakness Scotland offers at this time of year. 

Thanks to detailed labels, we also learn a lot about each artist. A particularly memorable bio is written for Cadell, revealing his prodigal beginnings, queerness and a stint serving in World War I (the only Colourist to do so). Elsewhere, the inclusion of Bessie MacNicol’s oil paintings act as an important nod to the first generation of women formally training at Glasgow School Of Art during the late 1800s, further contextualising the social landscape surrounding the Scottish Colourists throughout their careers. 

While it may not be the first time these pieces have been displayed together, it will no doubt be many visitors’ introduction to Scotland’s leading 20th-century artists. Selections in the exhibition from Matisse and Derain are a large selling point but largely unnecessary against the stronger homegrown narratives. Learning about Scotland’s art scene from the 1800s to the mid 1900s, and seeing the strong links between Edinburgh, Paris, Venice and other pioneering European cities, is both delightful and enlightening.

The Scottish Colourists: Radical Perspectives, Dovecot Studios, Edinburgh, until Saturday 28 June.