Eric Ravilious was a painter, designer, illustrator and wood engraver. He was born in 1903 in the East Sussex, and the environment of his upbringing is evident in his popular watercolours of the South Downs and the south coast. He was particularly inspired by chalk hill figures. He brought a unique perspective to his depiction of England between the wars, creating landscapes with a quirky, modernist sensibility. Ravilious served as a war artist, creating dazzling seascapes and fresh studies of planes in flight, and died when his plane was lost off the coast of Iceland in 1942. The charm and flair of his work has ensured its enduring popularity.