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Travel chaos meant I didn't get to see Jack Vettriano's attempt at Christmas cheer - he's the official artist of this year's First Ministerial Christmas card, which was unveiled in Edinburgh on Monday afternoon.

But I did earlier have time to sneak a look at one of the smallest, yet most interesting exhibitions at the National Galleries of Scotland this year.

The Young Vermeer places the galleries' own painting -

The Procuress from Dresden and Diana and her Nymphs from the Hague.

It's the antithesis of the art blockbuster - a mere three paintings in one small room - but for all that, a fascinating display.

These works are all by the young Vermeer - and hint at the colours and style and use of light he'll develop in more famous paintings.

Look at the reflection in the brass bowl Diana's feet are being bathed in.

Look at the canary yellow in the prostitute's gown in the newly cleaned Procuress.

"Blockbuster exhibitions are all well and good," says Tico Seifert, senior curator of European Art at the National Galleries of Scotland.

"But they can be a little overwhelming and you can miss so much.

"These have only been displayed together once before - and that was before the Procuress underwent conservation work, so it looks quite different.

"And visitors can also focus a little more on the early work, which is often overlooked by the public at least."

With only 36 known paintings, Vermeer is one of the world's most exclusive artists - and the National Galleries is one of only 17 national collections to own one of his works.

Their Vermeer arrived in the collection in 1927 - although it had previously hung on the wall of the family home of Glasgow thread manufacturer William Coates, who by coincidence is the great grandfather of another senior curator at the National Galleries, Frances Fowle.

"He had a big collection - around 300 works - but this was his most important," she says.

"His sons bequeathed it to the National Galleries after his death in 1926 and I think he would have been proud that it became such an important painting for this collection and that it's the focus of this exhibition.

"He wanted it to be seen by as many people as possible."

Staff aren't sure how many people will see this small but significant exhibition - but since it's free and just off the main galleries, they hope it'll draw quite a crowd between Wednesday 8 December when it opens - and 13 March next year.