March 2004. There are large curled shards of painted and scissored paper loosely heaped in the middle of the studio floor, like the peeled rind of a carnival paper fruit. You can't tell whether these reds, greys and yellows, deep-dyed or thinly brushed, are sweepings-up after the event or the material from which something new will be fashioned, like a dressmaker's paper pattern before the pieces are tacked together. The on-and-off breeze sliding across the glazed doors that stand open on one side has a soft, chill edge to it that you find only near the sea, in spring or in autumn. It's getting towards evening, and the sun has swung round so that light slices in, reaching to the far corner, an arrival. Although everything feels still and balanced in this vast, airy studio, there is also an intimation of coming and going, of movement you can't quite register let alone seize.

Despite her high reputation, little has previously been published about Blow. This is the first full-length study of her life and art.Lavishly illustrated throughout, it provides the first fully representative selection of works spanning all stages of her career, including new works created especially for this publication.

Michael Bird has worked in close collaboration with the artist and has drawn on a wealth of unpublished material. He explores the crucial importance of abstraction to Blow, and looks in depth at her relationship to other artists including Alberto Burri and Roger Hilton.He also places Blow's work in the context of British and international art movements of the post-war period and late twentieth century.

Through close attention to Blow's studio practice, this book provides wide-ranging insights into her creative process. It reveals the intensity of emotional engagement and technical experimentation that lie behind the apparent spontaneity of her vivid handling of materials, colour and form.

      Acknowledgements

      Foreword by Norman Rosenthal

Introduction What comes into it

Chapter 1 Who is she? 1925-1946

Chapter 2 New territories: 1947-1950

Chapter 3 Getting noticed: 1950-1957

Chapter 4 Something of that great simplicity: 1957-1060

Chapter 5 A personal kind of movement: 1960-1969

Chapter 6 The architecture of surfaces: 1970-1979

Chapter 7 The biggest splash: 1980-1994

Chapter 8 This time the sea: 1994-2004

Chapter 9 Coda: November 2004

      Notes

     Exhibitions

     Collections

     Chronology