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84 1919 Born in Chelsea, London. Her father, a poet, worked for the Board of Trade. Establishes a close relationship with him from an early age and frequently illustrates his poems. Her aunt was the architect and designer Eileen Gray. Privately educated at home by a governess. 1936 Visits the Surrealist Exhibition at the New Burlington Galleries, London. 1937 Attends Chelsea School of Art part-time and studies commercial design, life drawing and sculpture. Her tutors include Ceri Richards, Robert Medley, Julian Trevelyan and Henry Moore. Graham Sutherland gave advice on etching. The onset of war brings her early art education to an abrupt end. 1939-45 Becomes a 'firewatcher' and is conscripted by the Ministry of Labour, to work in the American Office of War Information in Grosvenor Square and Selfridge's basement. Draws charts and maps of military railway lines, magazine layouts and carries out clerical work. Attends drawing classes at the Central School of Art. Early visits to Southwold and various fishing ports along the Suffolk coast begin to inform her work. First thoughts of a full-time career in painting. While balancing office duties with artistic work, produces a series of Neo-Romantic coastal views. Subjects include shoreline flotsam and jetsam (tree roots, dead birds, bleached bones), initially executed in watercolour, inks and, later, in oil. 1945 Visits Holland and the newly-reopened Rijksmuseum. The Paul Klee exhibition at the National Gallery fuels an ever-growing awareness of the importance of process and technique. Discussions about art and architecture with Eileen Gray on her visits to London. Experiments with oil paint and egg tempera. Work shown at the Redfern Gallery, London. 1946 Exhibits with the London Group. Themes of labour and workers. 1946-49 Studies part time with Victor Pasmore at Camberwell School of Art and attends life classes at Chelsea School of Art. 1947 First solo exhibition at the Leger Gallery. Meets the artist and collector David Carr who exerts a significant influence on her, both personally and artistically. Cultivates a deep interest in the themes of labour, the working environment and machinery. Working in Southwold. Begins to make prints for the 'Ladies of Millers' (Caroline Lucas and Frances Byng-Stamper). Teaches herself lithography from books. Process becomes increasingly important as does 'indirect' mark-making such as the use of monotypes, printing and stencils etc. Becomes a part of the Soho set, meeting fellow artists (including Keith Vaughan), writers and poets (Dylan Thomas) in the Colony Room and the French Pub. 1948 Featured in Picture Post (March 1949). Growing recognition. 1950s Loosely connected to the group of painters with 'Neo-Romantic' tendencies, including Minton, Craxton, Ayrton, Vaughan, MacBryde and Colquhoun. 1950-53 Producing urban scenes, depicting industrial landscapes, people at work and the accoutrements of labour. Embarks on a series of paintings depicting men in lorries. Drawing in factories and bakeries with the sculptor Ghisha Koenig. Images of women at work. Increasing awareness that her chosen subject-matter has hitherto been ignored and becomes evermore determined to explore this new aesthetic. Friendships formed with John Berger, Bryan Wynter, Derrick Greaves, Cedric Morris, Edward Middleditch, Lett Haines, Patrick Heron and Mary Potter. 1951 Work included in the important exhibitions, British Painting: 1925-50 and 60 Paintings for '51 (Festival of Britain exhibition), and the first Bienal de Séo Paulo. Early Neo-Romantic tendencies now being replaced by leanings towards realism. Develops a method of jotting down descriptive words and phrases as a means of note-taking; these become as important as drawing while gathering information for picture-making. Prunella Clough: Biography Clough as featured in Picture Post, March 1949 – Photo by Felix Man