Cezanne

School Library Journal

Gr 6 Up-Because of this series entry's fragmented page design, it will take a bit of effort to follow the chronological presentation through its 12 double-page installments. Snippets about Czanne's life are revealed along with a discussion of his artistic style and subjects; numerous full-color illustrations and reproductions appear throughout. In addition, sidebars encourage readers to try related mediums or techniques, e.g., ``watercolor,'' ``showing depth,'' ``blocks of color.'' While the few facts and reproductions present some starting points to better appreciate the artist, there's a danger that the utter simplicity of such comments as ``...he used paint for the pleasure of the designs he could create from it'' may be misleading. Furthermore, the inclusion of insipid instructions for producing pictures allegedly based on some of Czanne's concepts and media is questionable. Such shallow exercises may induce young people to believe that they understand ``one of the most important painters of his time.''-Kenneth Marantz, Art Education Department, Ohio State University, Columbus