Grace Lydia Golden (2 April 1904 – 3 June 1993) was an English

illustrator An illustrator is an artist who specializes in enhancing writing or elucidating concepts by providing a visual representation that corresponds to the content of the associated text or idea. The illustration may be intended to clarify complicat ...

and

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the stu ...

. Raised in London, she began illustrating books in the early 1930s and began painting exhibition pieces after becoming the recipient of a small legacy in 1934, working in watercolours and oil paint.

Early life

Grace Golden was born to a working-class family in east London. After her education at the

City of London School for Girls (''O Lord Direct us'') , established = 1894 , closed = , type = Independent day school , religion = , president = , head_label = Headmistress , head = Jenny Brown , r_head_label = ...

, she won a scholarship to the

Chelsea College of Art Chelsea College of Arts is a constituent college of the University of the Arts London based in London, United Kingdom, and is a leading British art and design institution with an international reputation. It offers further and higher educat ...

, where she studied from 1920 to 1923. She progressed from there to the

Royal College of Art The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design university in the United Kingdom. It offe ...

, where she first studied and later taught from 1926 to 1927. She also studied at the

Regent Street Polytechnic The University of Westminster is a public university, public university based in London, United Kingdom. Founded in 1838 as the Royal Polytechnic Institution, it was the first Polytechnic (United Kingdom), polytechnic to open in London. The Polyte ...

for a time.

Career

Golden's career in book illustration began in the early 1930s. She received a small legacy in 1934 which enabled her to work on exhibition pieces. Working in both

watercolours Watercolor (American English) or watercolour (British English; see spelling differences), also ''aquarelle'' (; from Italian diminutive of Latin ''aqua'' "water"), is a painting method”Watercolor may be as old as art itself, going back to ...

and

oil paint Oil paint is a type of slow-drying paint that consists of particles of pigment suspended in a drying oil, commonly linseed oil. The viscosity of the paint may be modified by the addition of a solvent such as turpentine or white spirit, and varn ...

, she exhibited at the

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...

, as well as the

Fine Art Society The Fine Art Society is a gallery based in both London and in Edinburgh's New Town (originally Bourne Fine Art, established 1978). The New Bond Street, London gallery closed its doors in August 2018 after being occupied by The Fine Art Society si ...

and

Leicester Galleries Leicester Galleries was an art gallery located in London from 1902 to 1977 that held exhibitions of modern British, French and international artists' works. Its name was acquired in 1984 by Peter Nahum, who operates "Peter Nahum at the Leiceste ...

. Golden received a commission from The

Pilgrim Trust The Pilgrim Trust is a national grant-making trust in the United Kingdom. It is based in London and is a registered charity under English law. It was founded in 1930 with a two million pound grant by Edward Harkness, an American philanthropist. T ...

to make illustrations of historic buildings and landmarks during World War II, as well as her work appearing in touring exhibitions. Golden received a sketching permit from the

War Artists' Advisory Committee The War Artists Advisory Committee (WAAC), was a British government agency established within the Ministry of Information at the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939 and headed by Sir Kenneth Clark. Its aim was to compile a comprehensive artist ...

, WAAC, which allowed her to draw and paint in public during the war. WAAC also purchased her painting ''An Emergency Food Office'' which showed people queuing for ration books. Later, she worked for the Ministry of Information – painstakingly producing illustrations which were used to aid the reading of educational books. Posters promoting safe working practice were produced from her illustrations, many of which were used to stress the hazards of a mixed-sex workforce within wartime manufacturing environments, with slogans such as "Keep your mind on the job – and save your knuckles". Golden had always been interested in the working life of the

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

. She had witnessed the lives of the industrious people who were employed near and on the river from the age of five, when her parents had moved to a five-storey house at the City End of

Southwark Bridge Southwark Bridge ( ) is an arch bridge in London, for traffic linking the district of Southwark and the City across the River Thames. Besides when others are closed for temporary repairs, it has the least traffic of the Thames bridges in Londo ...

. This fascination led to her producing her book ''Old Bankside'' which contained some fifty-one illustrations of the wharfs and alleys alongside the Thames between Blackfriars Bridge and London Bridge. Years later,

Sam Wanamaker Samuel Wanamaker, (born Wattenmacker; June 14, 1919 – December 18, 1993) was an American actor and director who moved to the United Kingdom after becoming fearful of being blacklisted in Hollywood due to his communist views. He is credited as ...

invited Golden to become the honorary archivist to his

Globe Theatre The Globe Theatre was a theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. It was built in 1599 by Shakespeare's playing company, the Lord Chamberlain's Men, on land owned by Thomas Brend and inherited by his son, Nicholas Brend, and gra ...

project, which was based in the same part of London. Her work also frequently appeared in the ''Swift'' annual (1957–1961).

Final years

Golden died on 3 June 1993, aged 89 at the

Royal Free Hospital The Royal Free Hospital (also known simply as the Royal Free) is a major teaching hospital in the Hampstead area of the London Borough of Camden. The hospital is part of the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust, which also runs services at Barn ...

in north London. She had, during her last years, become something of a

recluse A recluse is a person who lives in voluntary seclusion from the public and society. The word is from the Latin ''recludere'', which means "shut up" or "sequester". Historically, the word referred to a Christian hermit's total isolation from th ...

, having closed herself off from the world around her and living a life of frugality and simplicity. Her work, which was popular with many writers, including

Enid Blyton Enid Mary Blyton (11 August 1897 – 28 November 1968) was an English children's writer, whose books have been worldwide bestsellers since the 1930s, selling more than 600 million copies. Her books are still enormously popular and have be ...

, will be remembered for its attention to detail, which now makes her work of distinctive historical value. Some of her work is exhibited at the

Tate Gallery Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...

and

The National Archives National archives are central archives maintained by countries. This article contains a list of national archives. Among its more important tasks are to ensure the accessibility and preservation of the information produced by governments, both ...

. At

Golders Green Crematorium Golders Green Crematorium and Mausoleum was the first crematorium to be opened in London, and one of the oldest crematoria in Britain. The land for the crematorium was purchased in 1900, costing £6,000 (the equivalent of £135,987 in 2021), ...

, London, there is a

commemorative plaque A commemorative plaque, or simply plaque, or in other places referred to as a historical marker, historic marker, or historic plaque, is a plate of metal, ceramic, stone, wood, or other material, typically attached to a wall, stone, or other ...

to her.

Selected books illustrated by Golden

*''The Voyage of the Landship'' (1947) *''Towpath Pad'' (1951) *''Wings over Dulcia'' (1954) *''The Wonderful Winter'' (1956)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Golden, Grace 1904 births 1993 deaths 20th-century English historians 20th-century English women artists Artists from London Academics of the Royal College of Art Alumni of Chelsea College of Arts Alumni of the Royal College of Art Associates of the Royal College of Art British poster artists British women historians English illustrators People educated at the City of London School for Girls Women graphic designers