Coke Mattingly

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Coke Mattingly doesn’t concentrate on one genre. “The world is filled with subject matter. I don’t want to put myself in a box. I concentrate on lighting, colors, shapes, contrast or emotion, regardless of the subject. Look around in everyday life. If something catches your eye, photograph it! If it strikes a chord with the viewer, including yourself, you have a good image.”

Mattingly admits he is not always a realist in photography. Sometimes he likes to apply creative and artistic elements to his work and feels he has accomplished his goal if the viewer asks, “Is this a photograph or painting?”

The photos shown here are some samples of his creative applications, as well as realistic images. After serving in the U.S. Army with a tour in Vietnam, he went on to get an Associate’s Degree in Art from Kaskaskia College, his Bachelor’s Degree from Eastern Illinois University, and his Master’s in Advertising from the University of Illinois. He worked for 30 years in the Marketing and Sales
Departments of Caterpillar.

During his time at Caterpillar, he traveled extensively which sparked his love of travel and interest in photography. Since retiring ten years ago, this love for travel and taking photos has developed into a passion. He continues to be an avid traveler, having been to 15 different countries, including Italy 19 times.

Mattingly resides in Washington, Illinois with his wife of 47 years. He has taught several photography classes for Bradley University’s OLLI program. Some of his work has been shown in several locations in Central Illinois, including Exhibit A Art Gallery in Peoria Heights, Illinois, the Peoria Art Festival, and an exhibit in Lisle, Illinois.