William Blake

The poet, painter, and engraver William Blake is regarded as one of the principal figures of the Romantic Movement. Born in London on November 28th, 1757, he lived there for the entirety of his adult life. After completing an apprenticeship to the printmaker James Basire, he began his career as a commercial engraver. He then attended the Royal Academy of Art where he developed an interest in history painting. He produced illustrations to accompany his own visionary poetry and that of the poet Thomas Gray. Combining text and image, he complicated the perceived boundary between poetry and the visual arts.