Laura Knight has been described by art historians as the most important female artist of twentieth-century Britain. In 1929 she was made a Dame, and in 1936 she became the first woman to be elected to the exclusive Royal Academy since its inception in 1768. She is best known for her works in oils and watercolors that capture the world of theater and ballet, but she was also an official war artist during World War II, and was later sent to Nuremberg to record the trials in paint. In addition, her work focused on marginalized communities, including gypsies, circus performers, and workers in the American South.
 
Originally written in 1936, her autobiography offers a fantastic look inside the life of a prominent woman artist of the time. Back in print, now with forty color images of her work, Oil Paint and Grease Paint celebrates this trailblazing artist.