Edinburgh exhibitions: Picasso and Modern British Art

The highlight of the summer season, this exhibition examines the progression of Pablo Picasso’s influence in the UK as his reputation here steadily grew over the duration his life.

It features over 150 original works (including more than 60 Picasso paintings) featuring masterpieces from all stages of his career like The Three Dancers (pictured) from 1925. The exhibit also highlights work by the British artists whose work Picasso influenced, such as Henry Moore, Francis Bacon, Wyndham Lewis and others. 
Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, until 4 Nov, £10 (£7),

• nationalgalleries.org

150th INTERNATIONAL PHOTOGRAPHIC EXHIBITION

The Edinburgh Photographic Society is one of the longest established institutions of its kind in the world. Every year the society selects just slightly more than 200 photographs – from the several thousand submitted from around the world – to be exhibited for the duration of the Edinburgh International Festival. The general standard, needless to say, is extraordinarily high.
The Edinburgh Photographic Exhibition Centre, 68 Great King St, until 4 Sept, £4 (£3).

• edinburghphotographicsociety.co.uk

LESLIE HUNTER – A LIFE IN COLOUR

Part of the Edinburgh Art Festival, this is the first comprehensive exhibition of the work of George “Leslie” Hunter in more than 50 years. Hunter was one of the quartet of artists known as the Scottish Colourists, perhaps the most influential Scottish painters of the 20th century. Showing alongside this exhibition of more than 70 works, culled from Hunter’s travels in France, Italy and Fife, is a separate exhibition of the works of the Colourists who shared his influence – Peploe, Fergusson and Cadell. The City Art Centre, Market Street, until 2 Sept, £5 (£3.50) 
• edinburghmuseums.org.uk

ONE THOUSAND POINTS OF LIGHT

Dutch artist Melvin Moti has spent the last year exploring the collections of the NMS. The resulting film Eigenlicht (which means “intrinsic light”) is an experimental affair that highlights ultra-violet reactive minerals; rocks that absorb invisible light and transform it into visible light. “However dead the material of the rocks might be, they still seem to communicate to us,” says Moti, whose film is being shown alongside a selection of specimens and artefacts, ranging from fossilised scorpions to uranium scent bottles. 
National Museum of Scotland, until 21 October, free, 
• nms.ac.uk

PIRANESI

Subtitled “Master of Fantasy”, this exhibition of the prints and drawings of Giovanni Battista Piranesi (1720-1778) shows how the Italian master married observation and imagination to create a fantastical architectural vision rooted in reality. A prime influence on MC Escher, Piranesi’s imagination was caught by Rome’s ruins, and his draughtsmanship allowed him to recreate elements of buildings that were no longer there. 
Scottish National Gallery, until 7 October, free, 
• nationalgalleries.org