[5] Blair studied at the University of Canterbury from 1965 to 1967, under Rudolf Gopas and Don Peebles.
Blair's early painting works produced while living in Australia include Open Window - Brisbane (1969) and Primary Reflection (Melbourne 1971).
Initially, Blair's intuitive and expressionistic style was not readily accepted in New Zealand, but was accepted by Kees and Tina Hos who began exhibiting Blair's work at New Vision Gallery in Auckland from 1975.
[6] She worked as both a secondary school art teacher and university painting tutor from 1968 onwards.
[8] They married and had two children including the art curator and writer Alice Hutchison,[9] but later divorced.