William Blake Enter a
feeling, not
a gallery.
Choose a mood and the room itself answers — the light cools or warms, the air changes pace, and only the works that carry that feeling step forward from the dark. Everything else recedes into shadow.
William Blake
Early Life, Family and Training William Blake was born on November 28, 1757, in London, England. He was raised in a household above his father’s hosier shop at 28 Broad Street. His parents, James Blake and Catherine Wright Armitage Blake, provided a stable environment during a period of significant social change in the city. While his upbringing was marked by the modest means of a tradesman's family, his early years were defined by a s
ingular, intense imagination that often manifested in visions, such as seeing angels in the branches of a tree during childhood walks. Formal training began at the age of ten when he was enrolled at Henry Pars' drawing school. This early instruction provided the technical foundation for a career that would eventually move beyond simple sketching. By the age of 14, the necessity of practical work led him into a seven-year apprenticeshi…