The Pier at Cove - Loch Long

Cadell is celebrated as one of the Scottish Colourists, the four Edinburgh painters who absorbed the Post-Impressionist styles from France and applied them to their work during the 1920s and Thirties. The colour and broad-brush techniques Cadell learnt from painters like Matisse and Monet can be seen in this study of a steamer alongside the pier at Cove. In the distance is a view of the hills and the entrance to Loch Long. In 1934 the painting was given as a wedding present to Katharine Tennant, the half-sister of Margot Asquith, wife of the prime minister Herbert Asquith. Katherine was known to enjoy sailing in the area around Cove. The history and culture of steamer travel around the coasts of Scotland is of particular interest to the Scottish Maritime Museum, and this picture is a rare example of the industry as depicted by a modern artist of national significance.