Help shape the future of Blake Cottage
William Blake, America a Prophecy (1793; detail). Source: William Blake Archive →
William Blake’s ideas continue to inspire readers, artists and musicians around the world. The Blake Cottage Trust has a US Advisory Board whose members work with the trustees to raise awareness of Blake Cottage in the United States and help raise funds for its restoration. A wider group - our US Friends - help conserve the only intact Blake residence and support plans for the future creation of a Blake Centre - a place for research, education, artistic creation and community use in the spirit of William and Catherine Blake.
Daniel N Birnbaum is a playwright, poet, musician, and producer with a range of artist-centered programs to his credit. He’s also served as director of a nonprofit visual arts organization, worked for public agencies and foundations, and consulted on organizational strategy for the arts. Daniel is currently honored to serve as poet in residence with Jacob Jonas The Company, a Santa Monica-based dance company, where he writes and performs poetry as an integrated component of dance events.
Mark Crosby, FSA received his DPhil from the University of Oxford and is currently Professor of English and the Director of the Digital Humanities Center at Kansas State University. He has edited an edition of Blake’s Songs of Innocence (Bodleian 2024), and co-authored, with Robert N. Essick, the first critical edition of William Blake’s Genesis Manuscript (2012). Mark also co-edited Re-envisioning Blake (Palgrave 2012), William Blake’s Manuscripts: Praxis, Puzzles, and Palimpsests (Palgrave 2024) and William Hayley: A Biographer's Influence on Life Writing and Romantic Networks during the Long Eighteenth Century (Palgrave 2025). His earliest research was a reconstruction of Blake's cottage in Felpham and his most recent work includes the discovery of Blake’s earliest engraved art and the hanging arrangement of the 18 portraits of poets that Blake worked on during his time in Felpham.
Melanie Roher is a graphic designer and fine artist. She has worked as an exhibit designer on the staff at NY’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, has designed exhibitions and graphics for The National Gallery of Art, The Museum at Eldridge Street, among others. She was a designer for the Lower East Side Tenement Museum at its inception. Melanie has owned her own design firm in New York for three decades. Her paintings have been shown at many galleries in the NY area.
Stephen Schwartz is an Emmy Award winner and multiple Emmy nominated director, creator and producer of unscripted, “reality” and documentary television programming. Steve has served in executive roles at multiple television networks, and has his own production company, New Harbor Entertainment.
Members-only talks, lectures & online events
Regular updates on this project and other Blake initiatives
Invitations to special U.S. & U.K. gatherings
Opportunities to enquire about strictly limited visits to Blake Cottage before public opening, subject to prior arrangement and conservation progress
Participation in a growing worldwide network of Blake enthusiasts, creators, and cultural leaders
$100 – Supporter
$500 – Advocate
$1,000 – Patron
$5,000+ – Visionary (with special recognition opportunities)
US supporters can give through the Chapel & York US Foundation. The published US giving arrangements include card payments, wire transfers and stock donations. For gifts of property, major gifts, legacies or advice on the best route, please contact Chapel & York or the Trust.
Give through the Trust’s dedicated Chapel & York listing →
Follow the Donate link on that listing. The organisation name is The Blake Cottage Trust; UK registered charity number 1160716. Chapel & York provides donation receipts for US tax purposes.
Chapel & York US Foundation: info@chapel-yorkusfoundation.org
The Blake Cottage Trust: info@blakecottage.org
Thank you for helping conserve the cottage and bring Blake’s legacy to new audiences.