Great art needs someplace to start. Ensure your child gets that inspiration at a young age with a little help from a few good authors and a few excellent books. Why not start with these authors?
• Eric Carle; All of Eric Carle’s books are a delight of colour, shape and design. They draw you in and excite the eye of young and old alike. Here are just a few that might inspire the young artist at your house – ‘Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?’, ‘The Mixed-Up Chameleon’, ‘The Very Hungry Caterpillar’, ‘I See a Song’, ‘Hello, Red Fox’
• Lois Ehlert; Award winner illustrator and author, Lois Ehlert brings art to life with her collage style. She shows that art isn’t just about the line in a colourful way throughout her many books, which include – ‘Color Zoo’, ‘Planting a Rainbow’, ‘Chicka Chicka Boom Boom’, ‘Lots of Spots’, ‘Scraps’
• Peter H. Reynolds; Art isn’t about perfection, it is about creation. That is the premise behind many of Peter H. Reynolds beloved picture books. See if you don’t fall in love with ‘The Dot’, ‘Ish’, ‘Sky Color’. Also check out International Dot Day. Its September 15ish.
Individual Books
o Art Dog by Thacher Hurd – Art Dog saves the day with some fancy brushwork when famous artwork is stolen from the Dogopolis Museum of Art.
o Art & Max by David Wiesner – Arthur is an accomplished artist, but his friend Max is just a beginner. When Max delves into new mediums, the results are unexpected, but great!
o Beautiful Oops by Barney Saltzburg – Sometimes mistakes make the most beautiful art. This fun pop-up book is full of lessons on how to look at art in a different way, thru smudges, tears, holes and more.
o Chalk by Bill Thomson – When a group of kids takes some chalk to the playground, creativity is set free and the world they create comes alive.
o Harold and the Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson – The classic story of 4 year-old Harold, who creates a world of his own, compliments of his handy purple crayon.
o Mouse Paint by Ellen Stoll Walsh – Learn about colour mixing with the help of a few cute mix who climb in and out of paint jars to mix up some fun.
o The Art Lesson by Tomie dePaolo – Tommy is thrilled to go to school to learn about art, until he discovers that there are ‘rules’. But he is excited to discover that you can still be an individual within the rules
o The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt – When Duncan goes to color, he discovers that the crayons have all quit. They are tired of only filling narrow roles and want to expand their color palette.
o Too Much Glue by Jason Lefebvre – Matty loves to create with glue, but his teacher warns him that he shouldn’t use too much. So Matty reaches for the fullest bottle he can with funny results.