Matthew Holden Bates

Painter | Author | Florence, Italy

Matthew Holden Bates is an Irish American painter and novelist based in Florence, Italy. His artwork has been exhibited internationally for over two decades, with shows in Washington D.C., New York, Boston, Virginia, Paris, Cannes, Rome, and extensively throughout Florence.

He has held numerous solo exhibitions and has shown in notable venues including the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., and in Florence at the American Consulate, the Padiglione Berti, and at Palazzo Medici Riccardi.

Working from his own photography, Bates creates highly detailed cityscapes and figurative paintings that capture everyday life within the historic architecture of Florence. In recent years, he has also begun writing novels that explore art, history, and the relationship between the past and the present.


Selected Exhibitions

  • Palazzo Medici Riccardi, Florence
  • Kennedy Center, Washington D.C.
  • American Consulate, Florence
  • Agora Gallery, New York
  • Galerie Neel, Paris & Cannes
  • Galerie D'Orsay, Boston
  • Padiglione Berti, Sesto Fiorentino

    • Map of Florence, Italy featuring the placement of each painting's inspiration

Posters of Major Shows 

'Where the Circle Meets the Square' a novel set in Florence, 1503 and 2025.

Click on the cover to read the First Chapter for free!

'Sitting on the Steps of the Duomo' a novel of self discovery in Florence

Click on the Cover to read the first chapter for free!

Selected Exhibitions

  • 1997 – Artisans Gallery, Washington D.C., USA
  • 1998 – Watergate Gallery, Washington D.C., USA
  • 1998–2000 – Mannaioni Gallery, Florence, Italy
  • 1998 – Piansa Gallery (One Man Show), Florence, Italy
  • 1998 – Kennedy Center, Washington D.C., USA
  • 2001 – Ken’s Gallery, Florence, Italy
  • 2001 – Florence Art Gallery, Florence, Italy
  • 2001 – Art-E-Mail, Marbella, Spain
  • 2001 – American Consulate, Florence, Italy
  • 2002 – Agora Gallery, New York City, USA
  • 2002 – Art-E-Mail, Marbella, Spain
  • 2003 – Enoteca Giraldi (One Man Show), Florence, Italy
  • 2004–2006 – Figaro Gallery, Annandale, Virginia, USA
  • 2006 – “Flowers That Last Forever”, Figaro Gallery, Annandale, Virginia, USA
  • 2006 – “Art in Progress”, SKY TV (Italy), Leonardo Channel
  • 2008–2010 – Galerie Neel, Paris & Cannes, France
  • 2010 – “Oltre La Prospettiva” (One Man Show), Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
  • 2010 – Palazzo Pretorio Exhibitions, Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
  • 2011–2013 – Galerie D'Orsay, Boston, USA
  • 2011 – “In Viola”, Villa San Lorenzo, Florence, Italy
  • 2012 – “Tema Libera”, Villa San Lorenzo, Florence, Italy
  • 2013 – “Fra Spazio e Tempo” (One Man Show), Florence, Italy
  • 2014–2017 – Galleria Hotel Nazionale (One Man Exhibitions), Florence, Italy
  • 2014 – Group Exhibitions, Florence, Italy
  • 2015 – “Visto da Vicino”, Palazzo Medici Riccardi, Florence, Italy
  • 2017 – “Tuscan Taste” (One Man Show), Florence, Italy
  • 2018–2019 – Sala San Sebastiano, Group Shows
  • 2019 – Home Visit (One Man Show), Manchester-by-the-Sea, USA
  • 2023 – “Arte si Mostra”, Rome, Italy
  • 2026 – “Awaken”, Beach Street Gallery, Manchester by the Sea, USA