Valentine

Art Historical Context

Kate Greenaway’s “Valentine” (1876) captures the Victorian enthusiasm for exchanging printed tokens of affection. A leading illustrator of the period, Greenaway was celebrated for her delicate, nostalgic imagery of figures in Regency-style dress. Here she applies that same gentle charm to a diminutive greeting card, transforming an everyday sentiment into a miniature work of art. Measuring just under five inches, the card was produced using chromolithography for its soft colors and gold lithography for sparkling accents—techniques that made colorful, affordable prints widely available for the first time. As both ephemera and print, it reflects the nineteenth-century marriage of new commercial technology with personal ritual, allowing middle-class Victorians to send beautifully designed messages of love. Today the card’s presence in the Metropolitan Museum’s collection reminds visitors how small printed objects once carried significant emotional weight, preserving a moment of courtship in lasting, luminous detail.

About the Artist

Kate Greenaway · 1846–1901

Kate Greenaway (1846–1901) was a British artist and writer who became one of the most beloved children's book illustrators of the Victorian era and a significant influence on children's fashion and popular culture. Born Catherine Greenaway in Hoxton, London, she studied at the Slade School of Fine Art and the Royal Female School of Art, and began her career designing greeting cards and magazine il...