Constructed Abstract Art in England After the Second World War

Much admired as a realist painter, English artist Victor Pasmore surprised the art world in 1948 by suddenly directing his efforts toward the making of constructed abstract art. Pasmore was followed by Kenneth and Mary Martin, Adrian Heath and the sculptor Robert Adams, and the group was then joined by younger artists, Anthony Hill, John Ernest and Gillian Wise. This book follows the development of this major avant-garde group and explores why they have received so little attention until now. Alastair Grieve draws on personal discussions with these artists over many years and on extensive archival materials, including ephemeral catalogues which are difficult to find today. He offers much new information about the group and their theories, the Continental roots of their constructed abstract art, and their links with such contemporaries as American relief artist Charles Biederman and English constructivist Stephen Gilbert. The book features more than three hundred illustrations, half in colour, and a full chronology and bibliography.