Victorian Influences in Graphic Design

The Industrial Revolution, which occurred between 1760 and 1840, brought about many changes and innovation, specifically in the world of graphic design.  Victorian style design proved to be very influential during this time period, and it was seen throughout various different print works during the nineteenth century.  From advertisements to children’s novels, Victorian design seemed to flourish.

During the nineteenth century, Victorian style graphic design appeared to be trending, especially for advertisements.  Many of the persuasive advertisements, using Victorian designs and influences, were developed during the last two decades of the nineteenth century.  Victorian design includes elaborate typography, illustrations, and decorative banners.  Romantic design was heavily influenced on the past, so it has a great sense of nostalgia and romanticism.  “Victorian graphic design captured and conveyed the values of the era. Sentimentality, nostalgia, and a canon of idealized beauty were expressed through printed images of children, maidens, puppies, and flowers” (Meggs 162).  The image below, is an advertisement for Waterloo Organs, made by Malcolm Love & Co.  We can see the Victorian influence in this trade card, by the style of the furniture, the dresses that the women are wearing, and the decorative banner at the bottom. 

Chromolithography also emerged with the Industrial Revolution. “Chromolithographs can be identified by the presence of smooth edged-stippling in multiple colors or tones” (Chromolithographs 1).  Victorian design continued to emerge through the German immigrant to America, Louis Prang (1824-1909).  Popular romantic painting of the Victorian era was closely related with the graphic illustration of Prang and other chromolithographers.  Prang produced millions of album cards, called “scrap.”  These were considered “beautiful art bits” and people would collect them.  This was part of a major Victorian era pastime.  Below, is an example of Prang’s Valentine card, 1833.  This is an example of “the range of tone and color that could be achieved with chromolithography” (Meggs 164).  Below this picture is an example of one of Prang’s collectible albums.   These albums would include his company’s chromolithographs of birds, ferns and mosses, leaves, roses, butterflies, fruit blossoms, wild flowers, and pansies.

Louis Prang, Valentine card, 1833

Lastly, the Victorian era design also was a large influence on children’s books.  “Before the Victorian era, Western countries had a tendency to treat children as little adults” (Meggs 168).  The Victorian designers developed a more gentle attitude while producing design works, and this was greatly expressed through toy books, which were colorful picture books for preschool children.  Walter Crane (1845 to 1915) was one of the earliest designers of children’s books.  Another popular designer of Victorian style children’s books was Kate Greenaway (1846-1901.)  She captured the imagination of the Victorian era. “Silhouetted images and soft colors created pages of great charm, while the use of white space and asymmetrical balance broke with the Victorian tendency for clutter.”  The image below shows one of the children’s books that was illustrated by Kate Greenaway.  The Victorian elements are prominent, with the soft colors and lack of apparent contrast.   Below this image, are other books that were written and illustrated by Kate Greenaway.  The designs are quite similar, but all having their own individual charm.

   

Works Cited:

"Calendar Girl: Kate Greenaway’s Almanacs." Smithsonian Libraries Blog. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Feb. 2014. <http://blog.library.si.edu/2010/02/happy-new-year-from-smithsonian-libraries-kate-greenaways-almanacs/#.Uu6tWDnU5SU>.

"Chromolithograph." Graphics Atlas:. Image Permanence Institute, n.d. Web. 02 Feb. 2014. <http://www.graphicsatlas.org/identification/?process_id=81>.

"Graphic Arts." Louis Prang, 1824-1909. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Feb. 2014. <http://blogs.princeton.edu/graphicarts/2010/07/louis_prang.html>.

Meggs, Philip B., and Alston W. Purvis. Meggs' History of Graphic Design. Hoboken: J. Wiley & Sons, 2005. Print.

"Victorian Bookbinding." UNT Libraries: Rare Book & Texana Collections, Victorian Bookbinding Exhibit, Introduction. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Feb. 2014. <http://www.library.unt.edu/rarebooks/exhibits/binding/introduction.htm>.

Waterloo Organ Trade Card. Digital image. Antique Piano Shop. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Feb. 2014. <http://antiquepianoshop.com/online-museum/waterloo/>.