Kate Greenaway

Born in London in 1846, Kate Greenaway became one of the best-loved illustrators of the Victorian era. She studied art as a young woman and built her career through design and illustration before finding wide success with books for children.

Her breakthrough came with Under the Window in 1879, followed by a long run of popular works featuring idealized childhood scenes, gardens, and carefully observed period dress. Working closely with printer Edmund Evans, she developed a delicate, instantly recognizable style that made her books favorites in Britain and beyond.

Greenaway was also a writer as well as an artist, and her work left a lasting mark on children's book illustration. She died in 1901, but her images remain closely associated with the warmth, playfulness, and visual charm of 19th-century children's literature.