Giclee print with silkscreen varnish, edition of 75
Signed by the artist
13.5" x 16.5"
2010

Sir Peter Blake RA is an English artist often referred to as the Godfather of British Pop Art, best known for his limited edition prints and the design of the sleeve for The Beatles' album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.

Born in Dartford, Kent, Blake studied at Gravesend School of Art before being accepted into the prestigious Royal Academy of Art in London. He graduated in 1956, received a Leverhulme Research Award to study popular art, and travelled extensively, drawing inspiration as he roamed. Sir Peter Blake's fondness for popular culture can be clearly seen in much of his eclectic collages and silk screen prints with images of Marilyn Monroe mixing with Mona Lisa.

Peter Blake’s Running suite comprises 10 new images, created in collaboration with Opus Art and Bupa Great North Run Culture, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Great North Run.

Each image is available as a giclee print with silkscreen varnish, measuring 13.5 x 16.5 inches and from a signed edition of 75, and features images of the world’s most iconic half marathon, cigarette cards and vintage photographs of runners, medals, posters and much more. The majority of found images and objects Peter Blake has appropriated are from the Great North Run archives or sourced from the North East, but the finished images have a distinctly international feel. Interestingly, Peter Blake’s mother was born in South Shields (where the race ends) and moved to Kent in the 1930s, so this new suite can be seen as Blake’s homage to the area.

Edition numbers 1-25 of Peter Blake’s Running suite are only available to buy as a full portfolio of 10 prints, and the remainder of the edition are available to buy individually, exclusively from Opus Art.