Keith Henderson

Born in 1883, he built a long career as a Scottish painter working in oils and watercolours, while also becoming well known for book illustration and poster design. Reliable biographical sources describe him as active across several fields, with work for London Transport and the Empire Marketing Board as well as a substantial exhibiting career.

His life reached far beyond the studio. He served in the First World War and later worked as a war artist during the Second World War, experiences that shaped an important part of his output. Sources also note that he travelled widely, including in Africa and South America, and that the plants, birds, and animals he observed there found their way into his illustrations and published books.

For readers, the appeal is in that mix of observation and imagination: he was an artist who could make landscapes, wildlife, and scenes of adventure feel vivid on the page. He died in 1982, leaving behind a body of work that connects British book illustration with painting, travel, and natural history.