William Blake

William Blake was born in London in 1757, the son of a hosier. He left school at ten, having learned to read and write, and as a child he described visions such as angels among the haystacks. At fourteen he was apprenticed to an engraver, and he later studied at the Royal Academy. He earned his living mainly as an engraver of book illustrations. In 1782 he married Catherine Boucher, who helped him with his work. Blake invented a method he called relief etching, which let him print his poems and pictures together on the same copper plate; he and Catherine then coloured the pages by hand. In this way he produced Songs of Innocence and of Experience, which include 'The Lamb' and 'The Tyger'. He also wrote long prophetic books, such as Jerusalem, and made paintings and engravings, including illustrations for the Book of Job and Dante's Divine Comedy. He was largely unrecognised in his lifetime, and many contemporaries thought him mad. He died in London in 1827. Today he is seen as one of the great figures of English poetry and art.

William Blake is also an author in the library: author page and works.

Faith: A Christian visionary hostile to the Church of England and to almost all organised religion. Source: Wikipedia

See also: William Wordsworth · Samuel Taylor Coleridge