Life and times of leading colourist

John Duncan Fergusson is regarded as the most internationally recognised artist of the Scottish colourists.

Spending most of his life in Paris or London, he was highly influenced by Henri Matisse and other artists in the French modern movements of the early 20th Century.

Fergusson was born in Leith but took up his training in Paris at the Academie Julian and Academie Colarossi.

He then made his way to Edinburgh in 1902, where he held his first studio and was regularly seen painting in Princes Street Gardens.

In 1907 he relocated to Paris permanently, where he quickly became influenced by the Fauvist movement, which altered the style of his works greatly.

The following year Fergusson finished his first sculpture, the only Scottish colourist to do so.

In 1913, he met his lifelong partner and often business partner Margaret Morris. An important modern dancer, her students were a source of inspiration for Fergusson, providing the perfect models for many of his paintings.

He travelled to the south of France, invited Morris to spend time with him there, and his works grew bolder.

When the First World War broke out he moved to London.

He returned to Paris in the 1930s before eventually settling back in Scotland. Fergusson and Morris would, however, continue to travel to the south of France for the rest of their lives.

They moved to Glasgow in 1939, where Fergusson founded the New Scottish Group.

He continued to paint with bright colours, and decided to neglect black in his works.

The Fergusson Gallery in Perth, home to the largest collection of the artist’s work, opened in 1992.

It is due to close as part of a cultural review of the Fair City, including the £23m revamp of Perth City Hall.