89 year-old Basil King has known and worked with some of the greatest names in American art. In this episode, he talks about his life in the east end of London before his family emigrated to the US when he was 11, enrolling at the legendary Black Mountain College as a teenager, meeting Elaine and Willem de Kooning, Franz Kline, Jackson Pollock and Robert Creeley, working with Adolph Gottlieb, Mark Rothko and Barnett Newman in New York City, how his writing poetry accelerated after his first trip back to the UK, his painting themes and his heroes from art history.

Basil King talking with Bob Chaundy

Accompanying images on consideringart.com

Robert Creeley, 1998

Throwing the Moon, Tom Seaver, 1984

From the series Stravinsky/Nijinsky, 1983

All images are © Basil King

You can see more of Basil’s work on his website

Music: Ibiza by MBB | https://soundcloud.com/mbbofficial