Turner in January

Turner in January opens at the National Galleries of Scotland on 1 January 2027, running through to 31 January. It's a small, focused show: 38 watercolours by J.M.W. Turner, all painted across his career and all held in the national collection.

There's a specific reason these particular works come out this time of year. They're part of the Vaughan bequest, a collection of 38 watercolours gifted to the people of Scotland by the collector Henry Vaughan in 1900. Because watercolours are so sensitive to light, they're only shown once a year, when the winter light levels are at their lowest. That's why the exhibition always falls in January — it's the only time they can be safely put on display without risking damage. They're widely considered among the highlights of Scotland's national art collection, and this is the only window you'll get to see them in the flesh.

Turner is one of Britain's greatest artists, and these watercolours span his whole working life, so you get a proper sense of how his style shifted over the decades. The National Galleries describe the display as a way to bring colour to the darkest month of the year, which is a nice way of putting it — a room full of Turner's light and colour when it's grey and raining outside is a decent excuse to get out of the house in January.

The exhibition is at the National Galleries of Scotland on The Mound, Edinburgh, EH2 2EL. It runs from Friday 1 January to Sunday 31 January, open daily from 10am to 5pm. Admission is free.