About me
Ever since my childhood days on England's south coast I have been fascinated by weathered textures. It mattered not if I were looking at the lichens and mosses on the trees of the New Forest or the rust and flaked paint on the hulks in the shipyards of Southampton Water; what mattered was looking at the way the elements shaped and formed the things that were all around me.
A graduate and postgraduate of Liverpool and London Universities, my professional life was spent lecturing physics in further and higher education. Upon retiring to live on Malta and then its sister island, Gozo, I was able to give more time to my painting, using transparent watercolours and acrylics mainly, although I also did a considerable amount of pen-and-ink drawing work.
My work
My paintings may be found in private collections as far afield as the USA, Canada, Slovakia and Malta. In Malta, one painting – the snow-bound wreck – is the property of the Mediterranean Conference Centre, Valletta; another – the old letterbox and phone booth – is the property of a former speaker of the Maltese Parliament; and a third – the tobacco merchant's building – is the property of the National Museum of Fine Art, Valletta.
Having moved to County Clare, Ireland, I am developing my work further, swapping the beige limestone of the Mediterranean basin for the lush, multi-hued greens of my new homeland.
My most recent major exhibition was held in March and April 2022, in Clare Museum, Ennis. Entitled "Famine, fields and fish", its theme was one every Irish person would recognize: The Great Famine of 1845-1850.
Location
My studio is in western County Clare, Ireland
Contact
lionelcoatesart@outlook.com
Mobile/cell inside Ireland:
089 95 44461;
outside Ireland:
+353 89 95 44461