This tiny still life reveals Peploe?s interest in Old Master painting, in particular the work of the seventeenth century artists Frans Hals and Rembrandt van Rijn, whose work he saw in Holland in 1895. After the First World War, Peploe virtually abandoned portraiture and figure painting and specialised instead in still lifes and landscapes. Here, the thickly applied paint of the flowers contrasts to the smooth, dark background.
Samuel John Peploe (Scottish, 1871 - 1935)
Peploe is one of the group of four artists known as the 'Scottish Colourists.' Born in Edinburgh, he studied art in Paris and lived there from 1910 to 1912. It was through painting holidays in Northern France that he was introduced to the use of bold colour, inspired by the bright sunlight. He later experienced the same intensity of light while painting on the island of Iona, off the west coast of Scotland. French painting proved to be a powerful influence for Peploe throughout his life. Although his work never became abstract, it was characterised by tight composition, strong colour and assured handling.
