Marie "Rie" Cramer was a Dutch writer and prolific illustrator of children's literature whose style is considered iconic for the interwar period. For many years, she was one of the two main illustrators for a leading Dutch youth magazine, Zonneschijn (Sunshine). During World War II, she continued working as an illustrator and theatrical designer, and she also wrote two plays using the pseudonym Marc Holman. She joined the resistance, helping fugitives, and she anonymously published anti-German verses in Het Parool, the largest underground resistance newspaper in the Netherlands.
She began her career as an illustrator while still a student. Her early work was influenced by illustrators like Edmund Dulac, Aubrey Beardsley, and Arthur Rackham and had a distinct Art Nouveau style. From the 1920s on, her illustrations became more simplified and less lyrical. The colours as well became less nuanced and brighter under the influence of her work on stage costumes and sets. From the 1930s on, she worked less on children's books and started writing books for young adults. She also created art pottery together with her friend Fransje Carbasius, whom she had met at the academy in The Hague.
(source: wikipedia)