ARTIST PROFILE

Stephen James Cole is an independent artist based in Lincoln, with a background in Design and Communication Arts. After graduating from Manchester Metropolitan University in the 1990s, he embarked on a long and fulfilling career teaching art and photography to secondary school students.

Inspired by his wife—who left teaching after the pandemic to pursue her own fine art practice—Stephen began developing his own artistic voice, exploring painting, mixed media, and photography. His creative foundation is deeply rooted in his early experiences working in the shipyards at Immingham Dock, a formative influence that continues to shape his work today.

In recent years, Stephen’s fascination with boats has evolved into a love for the Galician coastline in northern Spain, where he and his family spend their summers in the small fishing town of Bueu. There, he captures the region’s fishing vessels, yachts, and small boats using an infrared camera, transforming their textures, colours, and forms into vibrant abstract compositions. His paintings celebrate the character and energy of Galicia’s working boats set against the luminous greens of the Atlantic sea.