Born in Margate, Kent, in 1953, Matthew Alexander grew up in a family where painting was part of everyday life. His father, Christopher Alexander (1926-1982), was an accomplished artist and lecturer at Canterbury College of Art, and a profound influence on Matthew's development. From an early age, Matthew accompanied his father and brother, Gregory, on drawing and painting trips along the Kent coast and into East Anglia. His father was rarely without a sketchbook, and Matthew still treasures many of these early drawings in his studio.
Alexander studied at Canterbury College of Art from 1970 to 1971 and Maidstone College of Art from 1971 to 1974, followed by postgraduate studies at the University of London Institute of Education. He initially followed his father into teaching, while steadily establishing his own career as a painter. His first exhibition, at the Library Gallery in Margate in 1975, was a joint show with his father and brother. His first solo exhibition followed at the same gallery in 1981.
During the 1980s, Alexander began exhibiting regularly at the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition and with several of Britain's leading exhibiting societies. He was elected an Associate of the Royal Society of British Artists in 1983 and a full member in 1984, the year he also received the Hammerson Purchase Prize.
His reputation continued to grow through exhibitions in London and across Britain. A particularly important development came in 1995, when he began a long association with David Messum Fine Art in Cork Street, London. This brought his paintings to an international audience, with exhibitions in Europe and the United States, including Connecticut, Dallas and Santa Fe. His work has also been shown in Paris, The Hague, Dublin and Brussels.
Alexander has exhibited regularly at John Davies Gallery in Moreton-in-Marsh since 2013, with successive exhibitions featuring his landscapes of Britain, France and Venice. His longstanding relationship with the gallery has introduced his work to an appreciative following of collectors in the Cotswolds and beyond.
Among his notable commissions was a series of eight oil paintings for Cunard's ocean liner Queen Mary 2. He is also the author of Step by Step Watercolour, published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson in 1993. His paintings are held in private, public and corporate collections, including those of the Royal Automobile Club, Rochester Bridge Trust, Kent County Council, Cunard and Hammerson.
Alexander continues to live and work in Kent, where the coast, countryside and extraordinary skies that first inspired him remain at the heart of his painting.