Iona

Samuel John Peploe prints bring the bold colour and crisp design of the Scottish Colourists into your home. Peploe was famous for his still lifes of roses, tulips and fruit, arranged with fans, jugs and glasses, and for his clear, bright views of Iona and the French coast. Our collection of fine art prints includes his still lifes, landscapes, seascapes and Paris scenes.

About Samuel John Peploe

Samuel John Peploe was born in Edinburgh on 27 January 1871, the son of a bank manager. He left school at fourteen and was apprenticed to a firm of lawyers, but around 1889 he began studying art at the Trustees Academy in Edinburgh. He went on to the Royal Scottish Academy schools and then to the Académie Julian and Académie Colarossi in Paris.

In 1895 he visited the Netherlands and came back with reproductions of Rembrandt and Frans Hals. From 1901 he went on painting trips to northern France and the Hebrides with his friend J. D. Fergusson. In 1903 he became the first of the Scottish Colourists to hold a one-man show, in Edinburgh. He married Margaret MacKay in 1910 and moved to Paris, concentrating on still life and landscape.

Back in Scotland, dealers were slow to accept his newer work, but collectors such as John Blyth, William Burrell and Robert Wemyss Honeyman began buying it. In the 1920s he spent several summers painting on Iona with his fellow Colourist Francis Cadell. He died in Edinburgh on 11 October 1935.

Style and Subjects

Peploe's early still lifes follow Manet, with fluid brushwork, thick paint and dark backgrounds lit by strong light. After his time in France his colour grew brighter and his designs firmer, influenced by Cézanne, Matisse and Van Gogh.

His mature still lifes arrange roses, tulips, apples and pears with fans, jugs and glasses against bold, flat backgrounds. His landscapes of Iona, Cassis and Kirkcudbright use clear blues, greens and whites with crisp outlines.

Famous Works

• Barra (1902), Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Glasgow. An early Hebridean view from his painting trips with Fergusson.
• Still Life with Paint Tubes (1903), Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Glasgow. An early still life in his Manet-inspired manner.
• The Harbour, Cassis. Painted with Fergusson and Anne Estelle Rice in the south of France.
• Roses (1920), Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Glasgow. Roses in a vase, one of his favourite subjects.
• Boy Reading (1921), Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh. A quiet figure painting of a boy absorbed in a book.
• Still Life with Tulips (1925), Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Glasgow. Tulips in a jug against a bright background.
• Iona. The white sands and clear sea of the Hebridean island where he painted in the 1920s.

Decorating with Peploe Prints

Peploe's still lifes of roses and tulips are perfect for kitchens, dining rooms and living rooms. Their bold colour works well against white, grey or deep blue walls, and a pair such as Pink Roses in a Glass Vase and a tulip piece makes a classic arrangement.

His Iona and coastal scenes bring calm, clean colour to a bedroom, bathroom or hallway, and suit Scottish, coastal and modern interiors. Simple wooden frames suit his crisp, painterly style.

FAQ

Who were the Scottish Colourists?

The Scottish Colourists were four painters, Samuel John Peploe, John Duncan Fergusson, Francis Cadell and Leslie Hunter, known for bold colour inspired by French painting.

What is Samuel John Peploe known for?

Peploe is best known for his still lifes of roses, tulips and fruit, and for his views of the Hebridean island of Iona.

Who influenced Peploe?

He was influenced by Manet early on, and later by Cézanne, Matisse, Van Gogh and André Dunoyer de Segonzac.

Where did Peploe paint?

He painted in Edinburgh, Paris, northern France, Cassis, Kirkcudbright and the Hebrides, especially Barra and Iona.

Where can I see Peploe's paintings?

Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum in Glasgow has a large collection. Works are also in the Royal Scottish Academy in Edinburgh and at Culzean Castle.

Related Artists

• Francis Campbell Boileau Cadell: fellow Scottish Colourist who painted with him on Iona
• George Leslie Hunter: fellow Scottish Colourist
• Paul Cézanne: French painter whose work influenced his later style