Henriette Willebeek le Mair facts for kids
Henriette Willebeek LeMair (born April 23, 1889, in Rotterdam – died March 15, 1966) was a talented Dutch artist. She was famous for illustrating children's books. Her beautiful drawings brought many stories to life for young readers.
Her Artistic Journey
Henriette began her art journey at a young age. When she was just 15, her parents took her to Paris. There, she met a famous French illustrator named Louis-Maurice Boutet de Monvel. He gave her important advice about art. Henriette visited him every year to learn more.
Following his advice, she studied at the Rotterdam Academy of Art from 1909 to 1911. She also took private drawing lessons.
Her first published drawings appeared in 1904. A year later, she worked with her mother on three books. Her busiest years as an illustrator were between 1911 and 1917. Her artwork appeared on postcards and even on children's dishes. Of course, her illustrations were also in many books.
Henriette worked with watercolor paints. This helped her create delicate and detailed drawings. She often used soft, flat colors. She also liked to frame her pictures with decorative shapes. These shapes were often ovals or rounded rectangles. Even though she illustrated only a few books, her work was always highly praised. One art critic said she captured "the spirit of childhood" wonderfully.
When she was in her early twenties, Henriette ran a nursery school. She sometimes used her students as models for her drawings.
In 1920, Henriette married Hubertus Paulus Baron van Tuyll van Serooskerken. She then took on the name "Saida." They both became followers of Sufism. This is a spiritual path that teaches universal brotherhood and love. They spent their lives helping people in need and supporting good causes. They eventually made their home in The Hague, Netherlands.
Books She Illustrated
- Premières Rondes Enfantines (1904)
- Our Old Nursery Rhymes (1911)
- Little Songs of Long Ago (1912)
- Schumann’s Piano Album of Children’s Pieces (1913)
- Grannie’s Little Rhyme Book (1913)
- Mother’s Little Rhyme Book (1913)
- Auntie’s Little Rhyme Book (1913)
- Nursie’s Little Rhyme Book (1913)
- Daddy’s Little Rhyme Book (1913)
- Baby’s Little Rhyme Book (1913)
- Elkin, R. H., The Children’s Corner (1914)
- What the Children Sing (1915)
- Little People (1915)
- Elkin, R. H., Old Dutch Nursery Rhymes (1917)
- Baby’s Diary (ca. 1925)
- Milne, A. A., A Gallery of Children (1925)
- Stevenson, Robert Louis, A Child’s Garden of Verses (1926)
- Khan, Noor Inayat, Twenty Jakarta Tales (1939)
- Christmas Carols for Young Children (1946)
- Four & Twenty Tailors (1975)
- Lemair Diary’’ (1991)
- Little Green Rhyme Book (1995)
- Golden Days: A Book for Addresses and Days to Remember, by Henriette Willebeek Le Mair and Mair H. Le Willebeek (1997)
- A Children's Bedtime Book (2003)
- The Mother Goose Treasury (2003)
- Flower Garden of Inayat Khan by Inayat Khan by Inayat Khan (text) and H. Willebeek le Mair (illustrations) (2010)
- What the Children Sing: A Book of the Most Popular Rhymes & Games – Scholar's Choice Edition by Henriette Willebeek le Mair, Alfred Edward Moffat (2015) — 2 editions
Images for kids
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Babes in the Wools, by Saida, from a series of advertisements she illustrated for the American detergent brand Fab
