Martin Collins was born in Gloucester in 1941. He studied Fine Art Painting at Gloucestershire College of Art and Hornsey College of Art, London, before going on to teach art and design at a Nottinghamshire college. During this period he exhibited widely at venues in the Midlands, the north of England and Cornwall.

In the mid-1980's Martin left teaching and moved with his family to the Conwy Valley in north Wales, where he continues to live and work. For a number of years he worked freelance in publishing and is the author of over twenty books on walking the mountains and coastline of the UK and mainland Europe.

Martin returned to his artistic roots and resumed full-time painting in 2002. He paints the landscape, drawing from a lifetime's intimate observation of mountains, moors, countryside and coast. His quest is to reflect the drama and beauty of the natural environment and he does so with bold compositions, vibrant colours and a dynamic application of paint. Often working 'en plein air' on his smaller works and at his studio on larger canvasses, his paintings unfold very naturally as he responds intuitively and spontaneously to the scenery.

He says of his work: "My relationship with landscape is a profound one. Whilst man-made structures do sometimes feature, my inspiration mainly arises from wild locations where the elements are most keenly sensed; perhaps because of this, there appears to be subtle gravitation towards Celtic lands on the western fringes of Europe."

This latest exhibition, his second solo show at Oriel Tegfryn features approximately thirty new paintings.

Oriel Tegfryn Gallery
Cadnant Road, Menai Bridge
Anglesey LL59 5EW United Kingdom
Ph. +44 (0)12 48715128
tegfryn@artwales.com
www.artwales.com

Opening hours
Monday - Saturday from 10.00am to 5.00pm
Sunday from 11.00am to 4.30pm

Related images

  1. Martin Collins, West from Rhobell Fawr, Snowdonia, oil on canvas, 24 x 37 cm, 2013
  2. Martin Collins, Above Beddgelert, Snowdonia, oil on canvas board, 48 x 54 cm, 2013
  3. Martin Collins, Weather of the Hills, oil on canvas, 33 x 41 cm, 2014
  4. Martin Collins, Afon Conwy, High Summer, oil on canvas, 20 x 20 cm, 2013
  5. Martin Collins, Summit, oil on canvas, 41 x 35 cm, 2013
  6. Martin Collins, Summertime at West Shore, Llandudno, oil on canvas, 100 x 80 cm, 2013