Prunella Clough

Prunella Clough (11 November 1919 – 26 December 1999) was a prominent British artist.

"Her subjects are closely observed details and scenes from the landscape. The images are combined and filtered through memory, and evolve through a slow process of layering and re-working."[1]

Background

Born on 11 November 1919 in Chelsea, London to an affluent upper middle-class family, she was initially educated privately by her father, the poet Eric Taylor,[2] before enrolling at the Chelsea School of Art (now Chelsea College of Art and Design) in 1937. Her aunt was Irish designer Eileen Gray.[3]

Career

Apart from wartime service,[4] she painted full-time until her death in 1999, supplementing her income with lecturing posts at the Chelsea and Wimbledon Schools of Art.[5] Clough painted the industrial landscapes of post-WWII Britain.

Awards

Selected exhibitions

Public collections

Death

She died on 26 December 1999, aged 80, following a battle with cancer.

Favourite quote

"Painting is like throwing oneself into the sea to learn to swim" (Édouard Manet) - often quoted in interviews by Clough

Sources

References

  1. Sunday Telegraph, Issue #2396, 13 May 2007, Arts Section, Graham-Dixon, A., Heart of Industry
  2. Who's Who, 1971, p. 611, ISBN 0-7136-1140-5
  3. Adams, Peter. Eileen Gray: A Biography. London: Thames and Hudson, 1987,p. 9.
  4. Debrett's People of Today, 1992, p. 390, ISBN 1-870520-09-2
  5. Prunella Clough, Tufnell, B. (Ed) (2007, London, Tate Publishing), ISBN 978-1-85437-699-2
  6. Overview of Clough's achievements [ dead link ]
  7. "The painting prize that got it right", The Telegraph dated 22 September 1999, published by Telegraph Media Group Limited. Article accessed on 23 November 2013.
  8. Prunella Clough : a retrospective exhibition, Whitechapel Art Gallery, London, September - October 1960. Whitechapel Art Gallery. 1960. OCLC 10856536.
  9. Artist WebSite
  10. Tate Gallery exhibitions