Eleanor Campbell (illustrator) facts for kids

Eleanor B. Campbell (born 1894, died 1986) was a talented artist. She was known for illustrating children's books and painting portraits.

Eleanor Campbell's Artistic Journey

Eleanor grew up in Philadelphia, USA. She also spent some of her childhood in Seattle, Washington. Her parents were artists, and her sister, Elizabeth Campbell Warhanik, was also an artist. Elizabeth even helped start a group called Women Painters of Washington.

Eleanor studied art at the Sorbonne, a famous university in Paris. She became a popular illustrator for children's books. She worked for companies like the P. F. Volland Company and Scott Foresman. One review of a book she illustrated said she "knows all about little boys and girls."

Eleanor Campbell was the first artist to draw pictures for the famous Dick and Jane books. These books helped many children learn to read. Her pictures were watercolors. They showed everyday scenes, like a child trying to give a teddy bear a drink. She wanted her art to show the world as a child might see it. Eleanor often used photos of her friends' and family's children to create her drawings.

Fifty of Eleanor's original artworks for the Dick and Jane series were shown at the Lakeview Museum of Arts and Sciences. The exhibition was so popular that it stayed open for seventeen months instead of three! However, some people have said that the Dick and Jane illustrations mostly showed one type of family or person.

Eleanor's illustrations were also used in advertisements. You might have seen her art on boxes for Kellogg's and Weatena cereals.

After she retired, Eleanor lived in Seattle. She passed away there in 1986.