Famous British Artists

British artist Banksy is a world-renowned graffiti street artist. In the 1990s the artist started getting recognition as a graffiti artist with the DrBreadZ Crew. He turned to stencil art and used templates and graffiti for his art pieces. Among his most notable artworks are Naked, The Policemen Who Kiss, and the Mona Lisa with the Bazooka.

British artist William Blake began drawing classes at a young age and later enrolled at the Royal Academy of Arts to study painting.

British artist John Constable began to sketch the local countryside, nearby mills, and waterfalls. At the Royal Academy School he studied life classes and the Old Master techniques and read poetry. The artist chose to focus on painting nature.

British artist Tracey Emin attended the Maidstone Colleges of Art, earning a Master of Arts from the Royal College of Art. Her most notable artworks include My Bed, My Major Retrospective, autobiographical films portraying her early life, and a 2005 memoir titled Strangeland.

British artist Lucian Freud was born in Germany but moved to England and assumed British citizenship in 1939. His renowned grandfather, Sigmund Freud, encouraged his interest in art. He studied at the Central School of Arts and Crafts, being accepted for his three-legged sandstone carving.

British artist Thomas Gainsborough was an influential painter who was known for his portraits and landscapes. The artist has a quick painting style. He played a significant role in establishing the British Landscape Schools and was a founding member of the Royal Academy.

British artist Damien Hirst attended the Jacob Kramer School of Art and studied fine art at Goldsmiths College. He showcased his acclaimed series Natural History in 1991, which included preserved creatures in formaldehyde solution. The artist was fascinated with death, life, science, religion, and beauty, inspiring him to create such exhibitions as Some Went Mad, Some Ran Away, For The Love Of God, and The Agony And The Ecstasy within England and the international scene.

British artist David Hockney started studying art at a young age at the Bradford School of Art, later attending the Royal College of Art, where he focused on modernistic representation of art. The artist created a six-color lithograph titled A Hollywood Collection. He was known for his lithographic works. Later in life he took up residence in America, working with various mediums, using Polaroid pictures to create collages with others, and focusing on iPod drawings.

British artist L.S. Lowry was known for his distinctive style of painting urban landscapes in industrial districts of Northwest England. Among his artworks were “matchstick men” figures and mysterious landscapes. In the early 1940s the artist also painted seascapes.

British artist Henry Moore learned of the artwork of Michelangelo at school, and it inspired his interest in sculpture. He attended the Royal College of Art on a scholarship. The artist experimented with spontaneous art, and to further his studies, traveled to Northern Italy, where he studied the art of Giovanni Pisano, Michelangelo, and Giotto di Bondone. In 1972 Moore established the Henry Moore Foundation to promote and support young artists.

Graham Vivian Sutherland was renowned for his abstract landscapes, portraits of public figures, and his artwork in various media like printmaking, tapestry, and glass design. He designed the central tapestry for the Coventry Cathedral and in later years taught at prominent art colleges.

British artist Joseph Mallord William Turner (J. M. W. Turner) is considered one of the finest romanticism painters, especially his landscapes. He started painting while at school and later went to the Royal Academy School, working as a reproduction artist in renowned Thomas Malton’s studio.