Blake, Frederick Donald (1908 - 1997)

Frederick Donald Blake (1908 - 1997) was a Scottish artist. Born in Greenock, Scotland, Blake and his family moved to London during his childhood. He attended the Camberwell School of Art and began working in an interior design business as an architectural draftsman at the age of fifteen. He was drafted in early 1940 and began working for the ministry of Information creating propaganda posters and maps. He also worked for the Daily Express three nights a week, creating war maps and impressions of battles. After the war, Blake worked as a freelance and commercial artist, creating works for the aircraft industry, bus companies, and the railways. Blake continued working as an artist for the rest of his life, with painting always taking first place. He gained a reputation as a painter, won the Hunting Art Prize in 1982 for his watercolor 'Stormy Harbor', and had work exhibited throughout Europe and the United States.