Elizabeth Blackadder was born in Falkirk. From 1949-54 she studied art at Edinburgh University and Edinburgh College of Art where her teachers included Robin Philipson and William MacTaggart, and William Gillies. In 1954 she was awarded a Carnegie Travelling Scholarship and visited Yugoslavia, Greece and Italy. During a post-graduate scholarship year 1954-55 she spent nine months in Italy where she studied work of the early Italian School. In 1956 she married fellow student John Houston and began teaching at Edinburgh College of Art. Blackadder’s subjects included landscapes, flowers, cats, portraits, and still lifes. Commissions included tapestries, stained glass and lithographs. She was the first woman to be elected to both the Royal Scottish Academy and to the Royal Academy.