CHLOE PRESTON

Chloe Preston was born in 1887 to a landed British family, and her first book, The Peek-a-Boos, was published in 1910. She was one of the most admired artists of books and postcards showing children, combining a vivid sense of humor with a fiercely bright decorative sense. Her use of simple geometrical shapes filled with luscious patterns anticipated Art Deco. Her subject, even in books about war or outright fantasy adventures, was prosperous, secure British children, with plenty of toys, puppies, and ponies. Evidently, however, she was  interested in Japan (as were so many British and Americans at the time), and her fourth book in the series was The Peek-a-Boo Japs. The early books were written by her brother Tom, and Chloe and Tom seem to have "lived" the original Peek-a-Boo life. By 1922, there were 23 Peek-a-Boo books, along with shaped booklets, and eventually postcards, play books, and special books devoted to puppies and military men; there was also another series of books, The Chunkies. Except for the Japanese pictures, she seems to have portrayed exclusively English children. She included a Japanese girl with dolls in her 1926 postcard series for Raphael Tuck, "Quaint Litle Folk

 







Tom and Chloë Preston, The Peek-a-Boo Japs (New York: Hodder and Stoughton, n.d.) 1912




     Peek-a-Boo Japs is a very rare book. It is not discussed  in Mary Hillier's Chloe Preston and the Peek--A-Boos (1998, Richard Dennis), from which most of the above information is drawn (and which is a delightful, copiously illustrated book).
     Tom Preston's verses show very little interest in Japan. The verses include "Sweetbriar San," "The Little Lamp Boy," "Butterflies," "The Fearless Fisherman," "Peachblossom," "Pretty Polly," "Windy Weather," "The Kitten," "The Pedigree Pup," "The Young Nut," "The Perverse Parrot," and "The Destructive Dog." Most of these tales of childhood woe have no Japanese content except for the children's names or the comment that they live "in far Japan." Some don't even have that and could just as well be illustrated with Western children. For example, the "Fearless Fisherman" falls in the creek and emerges with a wet "suit" and squelching boots, and the "Young Nut" (dandy) also wears boots; on the other hand, the "Lamp Boy" is said to have a pigtail, which is properly a Chinese male hairstyle. In "Sweetbriar San," below, the picture of a little girl with her doll "sitting down" for a cup of tea with sugar and milk is easier to imagine with a little English girl at a table in party dress than with a Japanese child (e.g. the Japanese drink their tea without sugar and milk, do not spank their children, etc.)
     On the other hand, Chloe Preston, illustrating the verses, was evidently interested in Japanese fabrics, clothing, and styles. She plays around quite a bit with color schemes, patterns, and shapes, but one can often see an authentic observation under the decorative stylization.  Her little boys do not wear pigtails but have their heads shaved in appropriate Japanese patterns, and she invented a strange kind of sandal for her children to wear, with thick patterened soles and one cross-strap. Both boys and girls usually have elaborately tied obis, though males do not wear these in Japan. However, the little "Lamp Boy" who works for a living wears a blue-and-black striped costume appropriate to his class.




Sweetbriar San gave a party for tea,
Her dog and her dolly were there,
They sat side by side as sedate as could be,
A very respectable pair:
The dog it sat up, and the doll it sat down,
While their hostess made tea so refreshing and brown.
Sweetbriar San was resplendent in silk,
With a beautiful sash round her waist;
She put in the sugar, she put in the milk,
To make the tea sweet to the taste:
The doll it sat down, and the dog it sat up,
While their hostess was busy preparing each cup.
Sweetbriar San to the dog gave a cup,
And a cup to the dolly gave she;
The dog put its nose in and drank the tea up,
But the doll was as still as could be;
The dog it sat up, and the doll it sat down,
While their hostess's forehead was framed in a frown.
Sweetbriar Sam took the doll by the hair,
She laid him face down on her knee,
And after she'd smacked him, made haste to declare
That she'd never more ask him to teac;
Then the doll was thrown down, but the dog it sat up
And drank all the tea that was in the doll's cup.













































Chloe Preston was a British author-illustrator born in 1887. She illustrated stories by May Byron and Tom Preston (her brother) notably those featuring the 'Peek-a-Boos’ and the little wooden ‘Chunkies'. She also designed numerous postcards for Valentines and Raphael Tuck, soft toys for Farnells and nursery designs for Paragon China. 

The following are two nursery mugs from the Paragon Peek-a-Boo series marked to the base ParagonChina, England.  Chloe Preston designed these around 1918-1919 just after the end of the First World War.

The outline of the design is transfer printed and then hand painted in enamels as is all the other Paragon children’s china from this period. I've been collecting Paragon pieces for a number of years, but these are the only two I've found designed by Chloe Preston. I have several designed by Eileen Soper and will feature those in a future post.

Any admirer of Chloe Preston's outrageously funny little people will want this book, written by an author of toy books and filled with wonderful photographs: from the books, postcards, and Valentines as well as toys, jigsaws, china and ornaments. Hillier tracked down as much information as she could about this artist, who is not well known outside the circle of her ardent collectors. Publisher's records have disappeared and personal memories are few although the author does include some interviews and quite a lot of information about the family. Most of her artwork, certainly most of her books, were published between 1910, at which point she was 23 and living at home, and 1934, when she inherited an substantial income. The list is amazingly long. She eventually moved to Monaco, and died in Paris in 1969, a few days after her 82nd birthday.

*Chloe Preston (1887-1969), DAHLIAS AND GERBERAS

Chloe Preston Dolls and Figures

This is a rare velvet English pup, firmly stuffed with swivel head, turned down ears, and glass googly eyes. He's from an original design of "Dinkie" from the illustrations of British artist Chloe Preston, made by Farnell, and dates around the 1920s- 1930s period. He has cute detailing. He sits about 3.5" tall. Overall nice condition with a little bit of faint soiling on his bum. Pink ribbon bow.