William+Blake

..... William Blake was born on November 28, 1757 in England and lived most of his life in London. He lived in the Romantic age and was extremely well known as a poet, printmaker, and painter. In fact, he was considered an exceptional painter and was often commissioned by many patrons for his work. Many considered Blake a forerunner of anarchism, as he hated the Church of England and was highly influenced by the French and American Revolutions. His work was often of subjects pertaining to "the body of God" and "human existence itself". ..... At a young age, Blake was creating very interesting works. Some think he was just creative, others think he was simply mad. They probably thought he was mad because of the visions of God and angles he claimed to have. It also did not help that he used to have conversations with his dead brother, Robert. ..... Blake was educated by some very prominent academys and figures in England at the time. He served a seven year apprenticeship with engraver James Basike. Blake was often sent out into the city to make drawings for statues, paintings, engravings and other pieces of work. His work seems to be highly influenced by Gothic art and architecture. He also trained at the Royal Academy, but left because he felt too restricted. ..... In 1782, Blake married Catherine Sophia Bouder. They never had any children together, but appeared to be very happy. He taught her how to read and write, and together they worked on his publications. His first book of poems was //Poetical Sketches//, published in 1783. His next book of poems //Songs of Innocence// was published in 1789, and containted The Lamb, along with many other poems about innocent and wonderment. The entire collection of poems is told from a child's point of view. Blake made engravings for his works and other people's works. His characters were often driven by oppressive forces of law an religion. ..... In 1800, Blake and his wife moved to Felpham, a small village in Sussex, England. There he worked on various things for his patron, William Hayley. He was accused of treason against the King and aquitted. He made illustrations for Chaucher's //Canterbury Tails//. He also made watercolour's for Dante's //Diving Comedy//. ..... Blake moved to Fountain Court, Strand in 1821 to work for his last patron, John Linnell. Blake died on August 12, 1827. Catherine did not have enough money to bury him, so Linnell lended her the money. He was buried in an unmarked grave in the Non-Conformist Bunhill fields in London.