Graphics for Children


Another thing the Victorians were appreciated for was how they developed a more tender attitude towards children. Before the Victorian era, Western cultures had a tendency to treat children as “little adults”. The Victorians expressed their nurturing approach to children with the development of toy books. These were colorful books for pre-school children. A handful of English artist produced books showcasing a restrained use of color. These books represented an approach to children’s graphics that’s still in use today.

One of the earliest, and the most influential, designers of children’s books is Walter Crane. As a teenager he apprenticed at a wood-engraving firm. When he was only 20 years of age in 1865 he published his Rail Road Alphabet. His long series of toy books broke away from the conventions of printing material for children. These earlier conventions of graphics supported didactic or moral causes and always sought to teach children a lesson in life. Not Crane. He only sought to entertain. He was the first to be influenced by the Japanese woodblocks. He was so inspired by the flat colors and flowing contours that he introduced these influences to Western art.
Crane didn’t only turn out to have a significant influence on art and design education; he played an irreplaceable role in the Art & Crafts Movement.

Randolph Caldecott, a bank clerk in his twenties, moved to London and became a professional artist by the age of 28 years. He possessed a unique sense of absurd. His work was brought to life by his ability to exaggerate movement and facial expressions of both humans and animals. He created a world where dishes and crockery eloped, cats made music, the universe revolved around children and adults were their slaves. His humorous drawings became the prototype of all children’s books and even for animated movies today.


Randolph Caldecott, illustration from Hey Diddle Diddle, c. 1880. Oblivious to the outlandish 
elopement, Caldecott’s dancing dinnerware moves to a driving musical rhythm.

The work of Kate Greenaway captured the imagination of the Victorian era. She was both a poet and an illustrator. Not only did she create a modest and small world of childhood happiness, she pushed her graceful sense of page layout to innovative levels. She brought great charm to her pages by using silhouetted figures and soft colors. The Victorian tendency for clutter was broken by her use of white space and asymmetrical balance.

The clothes she designed for her characters had a major influence on children’s fashion design, even though Walter Crane complained that her younger models were drowning in their garments. Through the work of these whimsical artists, childhood became an idealized fantasy world. The Victorian love for sentiment and idealization made Greenaway an internationally famous graphic artist.

Kate Greenaway, page from Under the Window, 1879. 
By leaving out the background, Greenaway simplified her 
page designs and focused on the figures.

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