Quentin Blake and the Demoiselles des Bords de Seine

Quentin Blake is one of the best-known illustrators of our time. He was Roald Dahl's regular illustrator, and their books have enjoyed world popularity with generations of children. Blake has collaborated with many other well-known authors and also created his own picture-books such as Clown and Zagazoo. Quentin Blake was born in England in 1932. For more than 20 years he taught in and then led the illustration department of the Royal College of Art.
In 1999 he became the first Children's Laureate and in 2005 was appointed CBE for his services to children's literature. In France, where he spends a great deal of his time and where he has been published by Gallimard for the past 30 years, Quentin Blake has the same huge reputation as in Great Britain. His work has been exhibited there, and he has produced several books especially for French readers.
In 2002 he was made a Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres. It was on account of this reputation that he was invited by the Petit Palais to select and present the exhibition Quentin Blake et les Demoiselles des Bords de Seine, and in the exhibition and this book he displays his enthusiasm for 19th century French art with a perceptiveness and liveliness which will speak to readers of all ages.