Zelma Muriel Blakely (26 November 1921 - 6 September 1978) was a British painter, printmaker and engraver who illustrated a number of books.

Zelma Muriel Blakely
Born26 November 1921
Kensington, London, England
Died6 September 1978(1978-09-06) (aged 56)
Pin Mill, Suffolk, England
Education
Known forPrintmaking, book illustration

Biography

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Blakely was born in Kensington in London to James Blakely, a British diplomat, and Imeon Maria Matear, who had married in 1920.[1] Blakely attended schools in both the United States and England before studying at Kingston School of Art from 1939 to 1942 and then at the Slade School of Art from 1945 for three years.[2] At the Slade she was taught by both William Coldstream and Randolph Schwabe and won a notable prize, the Wilson Steer Gold Medal.[1] After the Slade, Blakely taught art at Heatherley's School of Art while establishing her career as a printmaker and book illustrator for which her preferred technique was wood-engraving.[3][4] She was elected an associate member of the Royal Society of Painter-Etchers and Engravers in 1955 and a full member in 1966.[4]

For many years Blakely lived at Rose Cottage at Pin Mill in Suffolk and she was a member of, and regular exhibitor with, the Ipswich Art Club from 1974.[1] Blakely was married twice, first in 1948 to the artist Keith MacKenzie (1924-1983), with who she had three sons, and after their divorce she remarried in 1977.[1]

Books illustrated

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Blakely, Zelma Murial". Suffolk Painters. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
  2. ^ a b c David Buckman (2006). Artists in Britain Since 1945 Vol 1, A to L. Art Dictionaries Ltd. ISBN 0-953260-95-X.
  3. ^ a b Frances Spalding (1990). 20th Century Painters and Sculptors. Antique Collectors' Club. ISBN 1-85149-106-6.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Alan Horne (1994). The Dictionary of 20th Century British Book Illustrators. Antique Collectors' Club. ISBN 1-85149-1082.