Phyllida Barlow was born in Newcastle in 1944 and now lives and works in London. She studied at Chelsea College of Arts and the Slade School of Fine Art before becoming an influential art teacher at the Slade School of Fine Art. She has exhibited internationally, including solo exhibitions at Tate Britain in 2014, The Nasher Sculpture Centre, Texas in 2015, and Kunsthaus Zurich 2016. Barlow was honoured with a CBE for her contribution to the arts in 2015, and will represent Britain at the 57th Venice Biennale in 2017.