Biography
Peter Coker was born in London in 1926. Studying initially at St Martin’s School of Art from 1941, Coker moved with his family to Manningtree in Essex in 1962. Whilst continuing to teach at St Martin’s (post-graduation) Peter also had occasional tenures as a teacher of painting at Colchester School of Art.
Throughout his career, Peter Coker held solo shows at many of the capital’s most prestigious commercial galleries, including the highly respected Zwemmer Gallery. During this time Peter continued to exhibit regularly at the Royal Academy, being elected an Associate Academician in 1965 and a full-blown Academician in 1972.
In October 2002 a major retrospective of the work of Peter Coker was held at the Chris Beetles Gallery, coinciding with the publication of a major authorised illustrated biography of the artist, with contributions from Richard Humphreys of the Tate Gallery.
Peter Coker died in Colchester, Essex, on 16 December 2004. His work is held in many of the most prestigious private and public art collections, including the Tate, Royal Academy, Abbot Hall, National Galleries of Scotland and the Royal College of Art.