The Legacy of Sir Peter Blake

In the post-war buzz of 1950s Britain and America, young artists were on the verge of a revolution. Tired of the constraints of the past and rigid ideas of what counted as art, the next generation was ready to break free of tradition and define a new creative paradigm. Sir Peter Blake was one of these artists, and he began his career as a founding member of the rebel pop art movement.

Creating a Movement

Inspired by Hollywood, the booming advertising scene, and pop culture such as music and comic books, pop art was loud, colorful, and daring. It was art for the masses, easily accessible by anyone, unlike the carefully guarded pieces showcased in museums and galleries that constrained new talent.

Graduating from the Royal College of Art in 1956, Blake won the Leverhulme Research Award. With this grant, he was able to study popular art on an international scale and began to discover his signature style on a funded tour throughout Europe. While oil painting has been a constant throughout his career, it was at this point he began to introduce elements of what the world came to understand as pop art. Blending images of celebrities with color and bold typographic statements into collages set Blake apart and established him as a founding father of this new art movement.

While American artists reflected on what they saw happening around them at the epicenter of pop culture, British artists were absorbing it from afar, providing a more critical and nuanced approach to the movement. Like other pop artists, the glossy veneer of corporate advertising and the impossible beauty of celebrity inspired Blake. He was known to take this hyper-idealism and elevate it – sometimes into the fantastical. From superheroes flying over London landmarks to classical nude figures posing with bikini-wearing beachgoers on roller skaters, collaging different objects and subjects together and mixing media gave his work a unique feel.

Sir Peter Blake

Like other pop artists, the glossy veneer of corporate advertising and the impossible beauty of celebrity inspired Blake.

Setting the Stage for Notoriety

With a growing reputation, Blake was offered commissions, from international famous album covers to brand collaboration projects. One such collaboration still resonates with the art world today; the design of a 1926 60-year-old bottle of whisky with The Macallan.

Sir Peter Blake in his studio

Setting the Stage for Notoriety

With a growing reputation, Blake was offered commissions, from international famous album covers to brand collaboration projects. One such collaboration still resonates with the art world today; the design of a 1926 60-year-old bottle of whisky with The Macallan.

The Single Malt Scotch whisky was matured for 60 years in a single sherry seasoned oak cask, resulting in 40 rare bottles, decanted at The Macallan Estate, located in the heart of Speyside, Scotland. Wanting to reflect the whisky's exclusive nature, the brand commissioned Blake, known for his distinct and trailblazing style, to design the label on one of the 12 bottles in the first special release. Such is the standing of The Macallan and Blake that the bottle sold for over half a million pounds at auction in 2019, making it one of the most expensive sales of its kind.

The second collaboration occurred in 2012, with the creation of a unique bottle to mark Blake’s 80th birthday. The tried and tested pairing is still going strong in the present day; in the form a third collaboration, the Anecdotes of Ages Collection, celebrating the rich legacy of The Macallan, and Blake’s contribution to the art world.

Sir Peter Blake has collaborated with The Macallan for almost four decades

The legacy of his impact on the international art scene will continue to be felt for years.

This collection contains just 13 one-of-a-kind bottles of 1967 single malt Scotch whisky. The year was chosen to commemorate the year Blake’s signature collage style transcended from art into popular culture. The labels feature original collage stories from The Macallan’s history, community, and the landscape of The Macallan Estate so central to the art of distillation. While the 13th bottle will remain in The Macallan archive, a duplicate will be released in The Anecdotes of Ages Collection: Down to Work Limited Edition. Only 322 bottles will be available worldwide. Additionally, a further special single malt Scotch, ‘An Estate, a Community, And A Distillery’, which marks Blake’s visit to The Macallan Estate, is set to be released in a custom box inspired by his art. Both will be available from February 2021.

While Sir Peter Blake considers himself retired, his reputation shows no sign of slowing down, and the legacy of his impact on the international art scene will continue to be felt for years.