The author of The Cutlery Trades: An Historical in the Economics of Small-scale Production Godfrey Isaac Howard Lloyd was born in 1875. He became Professor of Economics at Firth College, Sheffield in 1900, until he moved to the University of Toronto as the Associate Professor of Political Economy in 1909. Whilst in Toronto, he published The Cutlery Trades in 1913, based on the small-scale industries of Sheffield. The artist Arthur Lismer, originally from Sheffield but also recently emigrated to Canada, produced the illustrations for the book. The original illustratons are in the University of Sheffield Special Collections and Archives.

Arthur Lismer was born in Sheffield in 1885 and trained as an artist, first apprenticed to a photo-engraver at the age of twelve, and eventually opening his own photo-engraving business in Haymarket Chambers in 1908. However, Lismer struggled to attract regular customers and this likely influenced his decision to emigrate to Canada in January 1911.

Upon arrival in Canada, Lismer took a job with Grip Engraving Company. During his time in Canada, Lismer produced sketches for Godfrey Isaac Howard Lloyd’s The Cutlery Trades: An Historical in the Economics of Small-scale Production, published in 1913. Lismer went on to become a member of the Group of Seven, whose work was intended to give Canada a distinctive national voice in painting, and became known for its depictions of the North American wilderness. In 1967, Lismer was made a Companion of the Order of Canada after a lifetime as a dedicated painter and visionary teacher. He died in 1969.