Biography

Mark Pearson is a British painter with a career spanning more than forty years. Trained at the City & Guilds of London Art Schools and later completing the three-year Post Graduate Certificate at the Royal Academy Schools, he has maintained long-standing gallery representation throughout his professional life. 

Over the course of his career, Mark has sold hundreds of works to collectors around the world and exhibited widely. His portfolio includes numerous solo exhibitions, a large number of mixed shows, and appearances at major art fairs such as the Affordable Art Fair and the Decorative Fair. He has also undertaken many private commissions. 

Mark’s work has been recognised through features in articles, online publications, and podcasts. He served as a judge for the Artists in Public Service competition at the Menier and Peggy Jay galleries and has been long-listed twice for the Jackson’s Art Prize, long-listed for the Visual Arts Association Open 2025, and selected for the Soho & Guildford Open Competitions 2025. His paintings were also included in the Federation of British Artists’ 2021 60th-anniversary exhibition Figurative Art Now. 

Based in Peckham, Mark worked for many years from his studio in the iconic Bussey Building. His practice centres on figurative painting, exploring the character of urban spaces through landscapes, interiors, and the people who inhabit them. His interest in place extends beyond the city: Mark also paints coastal landscapes across the UK and abroad, capturing shorelines, harbours, and the shifting atmosphere of the coast. 

Light, space, and movement are at the heart of his work. Whether depicting a busy bar, a quiet park, a festival crowd, or a sunlit shoreline, Mark creates narrative scenes that reflect the rhythms of contemporary life. He works confidently across multiple mediums, primarily oils and acrylics, as well as watercolour, chalk, and pen and ink, bringing a distinctive clarity and immediacy to his imagery.