Sir Quentin Blake (b. 1932)

RA Collection: People and Organisations

English cartoonist, illustrator and children’s writer. He has illustrated hundreds of children’s books, including those written by Joan Aiken, Elizabeth Bowen, Sylvia Plath, William Steig and Dr Seuss. (He illustrated the first Seuss book that Seuss did not illustrate himself, Great Day for Up!, 1874). His is perhaps best known though for illustrating numerous books written by Roald Dahl.

In the 1960s Blake taught English at the Lycée Français de Londres. He taught at the Royal College of Art in London for over 20 years, where he was head of the illustration department from 1978 to 1986.

From 1999 to 2001 he was the inaugural British Children’s Laureate. In 2001 he was made an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Academy of Arts. In 2002 he won the biennial international Hans Christian Andersen Award, the highest recognition available to creators of children’s books. He was created Knights Batchelor in the 2013 New Year Honours for services to illustration. In 2017 he awarded the insignia of a Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur. He was appointed Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour (CH) for services to illustrationin in The Queen’s Jubilee Birthday Honours in 2022.