Painter and draughtsman in many media, born in Neisse, Silesia. Initially studied music and architecture. Then opted for art, studying in Munich and Berlin, notably with Lovis Corinth. First one-man show at Paul Cassirer Gallery, Berlin, 1911. Bloch then continued his art education mainly solo for some years in France, Spain and Italy. By 1920 he was able to have a retrospective at the Cassirer Gallery. Until 1933, when he left Germany for England, spending a year on the way in Denmark, Bloch associated with the Expressionists, for 10 years running an art school. Expressionism left an indelible mark on his style and palette even after he settled in Britain, whose citizenship he took in 1947. In Britain Bloch painted mainly in London, Dorset and Wales, although after World War II he was to travel widely in America and Canada, teaching for a time in Minneapolis.