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The stuff of life: notes on John Blackburn

Presented in 2 publications and a website, this research focuses upon establishing Blackburn's position within the history of 20th century British and international abstract painting. The research methodology is based on a number of recorded interviews and conversations with the artist in his studio, where I also examined work from the 1960s to the present (paintings, sketchbooks, notes, photographs). A crucial aspect of the research is that of establishing the inter-relationship between autobiographical meaning, humanist philosophy and formal/material aspects of Blackburn’s work. The research argues that although the artist can be bracketed stylistically alongside the St Ives artists William Scott and Roger Hilton, such readings are misleading when set against the factor of Blackburn’s essentially humanistic motivation. The research considers the formal and gestural tendencies in abstraction in relation to Blackburn’s painting, and his position in relation to artists operating as outsiders from the establishment such as Jean Fautrier and Derek Jarman. The 2 published essays on Blackburn led to an invitation to write about the collection of 19 Blackburn works in the collection of Kettle’s Yard, for the Public Catalogue Foundation website; pcf.org.uk.