French illustrator Emile Préval is thought to have been born in c.1845 and was almost certainly based in Paris. He produced drawings for the French fashion periodicals: ‘Le Moniteur De la Mode’ and ‘Le Journal des Dames et Damoiselles’. He also illustrated French writer and art critic Charles Blanc’s book ‘Art in Ornament and Dress’ (1877). An original watercolour for ‘Children’s Day Dress Fashions’ by Préval was sold through Sotheby’s, Billingshurst, in 1995. In his book on ‘Les Petits Maitre de la Peinture’ (‘Minor Masters of Painting’; 1981) Gerald Schurr argues that Préval was considered ‘the best fashion illustrator of his period’. However, French fashion illustrator Jules David (1808-1892) might now be considered a rival to the title.
