Barnett Freedman was born in Stepney, in the east end of London, the son of Louis Freedman, a journeyman tailor, and Reiza Ruk, Jewish immigrants from Russia.
17 Facts About Barnett Freedman
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Barnett Freedman attended evening classes at Saint Martin's School of Art, hoping to win a London County Council scholarship.
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Barnett Freedman married a fellow student, Beatrice Claudia Guercio; and, after hard times, gained an introduction to the publishers, Faber and Gwyer, for whom he illustrated Laurence Binyon's Wonder Night, in the Ariel Poems series.
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Barnett Freedman illustrated two further titles, Walter de la Mare's News and "Behold This Dreamer", and Roy Campbell's Choosing a Mast, while Guercio did sketches for de la Mare's poem, A Snowdrop.
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Barnett Freedman designed book jackets for the firm for twenty-five years.
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Barnett Freedman had by that time become interested in the difficult medium of auto-lithography, where the artist draws his own designs on to the stones without the intervention of a trade craftsmen or photomechanical means.
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Barnett Freedman was now recognised as a force in autolithographic printmaking, and his down-to-earth attitude and lack of pretension made him welcome among the craftsmen at the Curwen Press, the Baynard Press and Chromoworks, the leading firms in the industry.
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In 1936 Barnett Freedman illustrated George Borrow's Lavengro for the Limited Editions Club of New York.
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Barnett Freedman developed a technique whereby the black and white illustrations printed by line block simulated lithography, bringing a unity to the book.
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For Macy's less exclusive Heritage Press, Barnett Freedman illustrated Dickens's Oliver Twist, Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights and Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre.
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The Bronte novels are challenging for the illustrator, and Barnett Freedman's interpretations were regarded as among the best.
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Barnett Freedman was employed by Ealing Films to design its logo and provide the publicity for feature films such as Johnny Frenchman and San Demetrio.
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At the outbreak of the Second World War, Barnett Freedman was appointed as a full-time salaried war artist by the War Artists' Advisory Committee and sent to France in April 1940 to record the work of the British Expeditionary Force.
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Barnett Freedman painted a number of works there but was frustrated by a perceived lack of support, particularly transport provision.
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Barnett Freedman was evacuated to England in May 1940 and worked on coastal defence subjects in Sheerness and the Isle of Sheppey.
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In June 1944 Barnett Freedman went to Portsmouth, before travelling to France after the D-Day landings.
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Barnett Freedman produced a stream of colourful posters and black-and-white drawings for press advertisements.