Kate Greenaway

Born in London on March 17, 1846, Kate Greenaway studied art and design at several schools, including the Finsbury School of Art, the South Kensington School of Art, Heatherley’s, and the Slade. She became famous as an illustrator and writer whose images of childhood, gardens, and rural play captured the Victorian imagination.

Her breakthrough book, Under the Window (1879), was a major success, and she went on to create many beloved children's books marked by soft color, careful detail, and a distinctive sense of charm. Reference works describe her as an English artist and book illustrator known for original and appealing children's books, and her style became so popular that the clothing worn by her figures even influenced children's fashion.

Greenaway died in London on November 6, 1901. More than a century later, she is still remembered as one of the defining illustrators of children's literature, with a body of work that shaped how generations of readers pictured an idealized childhood.