Kevin Coates

Kevin Coates (born 1950[1]) is a British goldsmith and musician.[2] He is chiefly known for his work with jewels, but has also made table-pieces, ceremonial objects, small sculptures, and a number of medals.

Early and personal life

Coates was born in Kingston, Surrey, but grew up in West Sussex.[3] In 1966 his family travelled to Australia for two years where he studied with violin teacher Antonio de Palma. On return to the U.K. he took a Foundation course followed by a degree course at Central School of Art and an M.A in Jewellery Design at the Royal College of Art. His Ph.D from the Royal College of Art was published as Geometry, Proportion and the Art of Lutherie in 1985.[4]

Coates is also a musician (violin, viola, viola d'amore, baroque mandolin and lute), specialising in baroque and early classical music, using original instrruments of their period. In 1974, he met the musician (harpsichord, fortepiano and percussion) and film maker Nel Romano, with whom he formed the Duo Vinaccia[5] to promote the music of the baroque mandolin; they married in 1976 and there followed numerous recitals, recordings and broadcasts.

Career

Coates' pieces have been described as "characterized by a spiritual symbolism that is integral to the design",[6] and he is noted for the range of colours in his work. His designs include the 1982 Amity Cup[7] and a 1990 silver medal of Mozart.[8] He was awarded the first Marlow Award by the Society of Designer Craftsmen in 1972 followed by their Medal of Excellence in 1973. In 1976 he was awarded the Anstruther Award for goldsmithing by the Royal College of Art. In 1977 he was awarded the first Norman-Butler Award from the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths. He is an honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Art[9] and a Liveryman of the Goldsmiths' Company.

Publications
  • Geometry, Proportion, and the Art of Lutherie. Kevin Coates. Oxford University Press (1985): ISBN 9780 198161 3 94.
    • Clarendon Paperbacks (1991): ISBN 9780 198 162 46 9.
  • Kevin Coates: Goldsmith. Kevin Coates. The Goldsmiths' Company (1991): ISBN 9780 907814 2 14.
  • Fragments: Pages Stolen from a Book of Time. Kevin Coates. Arsenale Editrice, Venice (1999): ISBN 9788 877432 60 5.
  • Kevin Coates: A Hidden Alchemy - goldsmithing, jewels and table-pieces. K Coates with E Goring, H Clifford, N Romano, F Carli and Sir Roy Strong. Arnoldsche Art Publishers, Stuttgart (2008): ISBN 978 3 89790 284 8.
  • A Bestiary of Jewels. Kevin Coates. Ruthin Craft Centre in association with the Ashmolean Museum (2014):ISBN 9781 905865 63 5.

Collections

Coates's work is held in the public collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum,[1] the National Museums of Scotland, the British Museum, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, The Silver Trust and the Goldsmiths' Company, London.

Exhibitions
  • 1999-2001 Fragments: Pages Stolen from a Book of Time, Royal Museum, National Museums of Scotland, Edinburgh and Kennedy Galleries, New York
  • 2001 Supermodels, The Goldsmiths' Hall, London; Slices of Silver, Partridge's, London
  • 2006 Kevin Coates - The 'Mozart' Jewels, Mobilia Gallery, Cambridge, Massachusetts.
  • 2007 A Notebook of Pins, Mobilia Gallery, Cambridge, Massachusetts and Wallace Collection and 2010, at Collect, Saatchi Gallery, London.
  • 2011 Time Regained, Works by Artist-Goldsmith Kevin Coates, Wallace Collection[10]
  • 2014 A Bestiary of Jewels, Ashmolian Museum, Oxford[11]

References
  1. "Seraph | Coates, Kevin | V&A Search the Collections". V and A Collections. 23 August 2020.
  2. "Kevin Coates - Silver". directory.thegoldsmiths.co.uk. Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  3. Coates, Kevin; Goring, Elizabeth (2008). Kevin Coates: A Hidden Alchemy : Goldsmithing : Jewels and Table-pieces. Arnoldsche. ISBN 978-3-89790-284-8. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  4. Coates, Kevin (1985). Geometry, Proportion, and the Art of Lutherie: A Study of the Use and Aesthetic Significance of Geometry and Numerical Proportion in the Design of European Bowed and Plucked String Instruments in the Sixteenth, Seventeenth, and Eighteenth Centuries. Clarendon Press. ISBN 978-0-19-816139-4. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  5. Duo Vinaccia, Kevin Coates and Nel Romano, L'Art de la Mandoline Baroque (LP,Album) Arion 3833 (1976)
  6. Pullée, Caroline (1997). 20th century jewelry. North Dighton, MA: JG Press. p. 121. ISBN 9781572152496. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  7. Glanville, Philippa, ed. (1997). Silver : history & design. New York: Harry N. Abrams. pp. 78, 112. ISBN 9780810944718. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  8. "American Numismatic Society Magazine: 2013, Issue 3". ANS magazine (3): 46–49. 2013. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  9. "Honorary Fellows". Royal College of Art. Royal College of Art. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  10. "The Wallace Collection - What's On - Current Exhibitions". The Wallace Collection. 1 August 2011. Archived from the original on 1 August 2011. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  11. Ashmolian Museum catalogue A Bestiary of Jewels, ISBN 978-1-905865-63-5; and YouTube film A Bestiary of Jewels - a behind the scenes look at its creation, directed by Nel Romano.
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