Walter Crane – His Life, His Influence on Art & Design, & His Contribution to Children’s Literature

Image Credit: Wikipedia

Walter Crane had a relatively short life, but his contribution to art and literature was immense. He was born on August 15, 1845, and he died on March 14, 1915. He was an illustrator who was considered to be among the Golden Age of Illustrators. But beyond that, he was a master designer.

In my opinion, Crane’s best work reflects his use of the principles of Art Nouveau. He wrote books to help other artists understan his design principles that obvious in his work.

The above illustration is much more than a drawing of 2 horses. The way that the horses are arranged and thus, direct the viewer’s eye, reflects Crane’s command of designing the page.

The girl faces one way, and her hand adds emphasis to that direction, and the tree limbs pull the viewer’s eye back toward the figure. Again, the viewer’s eyes are directed all through and around the page. That is masterful design.

Even when you may not realize it, Walter Crane’s best illustrations are well-designed:

In the above illustration, Crane has placed the fiddles so that both they and their boys move the viewer’s eyes. Yet, the sense of design is subtle, and the illustration appears more natural than designed. But especially in his work with flowers, the viewer can detect ways that the image is a design — Crane often bases his designs on curves and repetition

Notice how the bluebells create an arched frame in the above illustration. A similar thing happens in the following illustration.

In the above image, the young man faces one way, but his hand sweeps to the other way and upward. The series of dropping flowers pulls the viewers eye downward.