Maurice Cockrill (b. 1936) is one of Britain’s most important abstract artists. This book traces his distinguished career, from the realist and pop works he produced as a central figure in the Liverpool art scene in the 1960s to the expressionist and abstract work he began to make after moving to London in the 1980s. Nicholas Alfrey provides an overview of Cockrill’s development based on the various studios he has occupied and the impact they have had on his working practice. Alex Kidson looks at Cockrill’s early realist paintings and their links with his later abstract compositions. The artist Arturo Di Stefano analyzes 12 key works in a series of short pieces that punctuate this beautifully illustrated monograph.

Nicholas Alfrey is associate professor in art history at the University of Nottingham. Alex Kidson is curator of British art at the Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool. Arturo Di Stefano is an artist.