Matthew Holden Bates
Painter | Author | Florence, Italy
Matthew Holden Bates is an Irish-American painter and author 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., the American Consulate in Florence, the Padiglione Berti, and 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, identity, and the relationship between the past and the present.
Matthew Holden Bates in Florence, Italy
Selected Exhibition Venues
- Palazzo Medici Riccardi, Florence
- Kennedy Center, Washington D.C.
- American Consulate, Florence
- Agora Gallery, New York
- Galerie Neel, Paris and Cannes
- Galerie D'Orsay, Boston
- Padiglione Berti, Sesto Fiorentino
- Sala San Sebastiano, Sesto Fiorentino
Out and About
Florence Cityscape Paintings
Map of Florence, Italy, featuring the locations that inspired many of Matthew Holden Bates's cityscape paintings.
Posters from major exhibitions.
Novels
Where the Circle Meets the Square
A novel set in Florence in 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 and 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