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Harry Lawrence Oakley was a silhouette artist during the early twentieth century. He became known for his designs for recruitment posters during the First World War where he also served with the Yorkshire Regiment of the British Army.

Early Life and Education
Oakley was born in Poppleton, near York in 1882. He showed a talent for drawing and cutting silhouettes from a young age, and studied art in York, Leeds and at the Royal College of Art

Pre-war career
Oakley taught art for London County Council and Worcester Royal Grammar School. He worked on decorations in the the Peace Palace in the Hague. York/Scarbourough/Harrogate exibitions etc.

Recruitment Posters
In the period between enlisting and leaving for training, Oakley designed the 'Think' poster featuring a line of advancing soldiers in silhouette. He submitted the design to the Parliamentary Recruiting Committee through a contact in the North Eastern Railway company. He was paid five guinneas for the poster which was used across Britain as well as in Canada and Australia with some alterations to the text. The success of 'Think' led to a commission for a second poster for the navy, for which he was given ten guinneas and two days to produce.

Military Career
Oakley had spent time in the Officer Training Corps while at school, and enlisted with the Yorkshire Regiment at the outbreak of war. He continued to produce silhouettes while serving on the western front which were published in soldier's magazines such as the Dump and the Bystander. He also produced a scale model of the terrain surrounding Messines Ridge in preparation for the British offensive of 1917.