Four Pictures by Emily Carr

Emily Carr was one of the few famous women painters of her generation, and today her work is being exhibited with and compared to that of Georgia O’Keeffe and Frida Kahlo. In this original picture book, Nicolas Debon traces Carr’s life through four of her best paintings. The first part, named after the painting Cedar House, shows her first sketching trip to a remote village, where she discovers West Coast native life and art. Autumn in France depicts Carr at work in a Paris art studio and immersing herself in the "New Art" of Chagall, Matisse, and Picasso. In Silhouette, her paintings are exhibited at the National Gallery and she meets with artists in the Group of Seven. Finally, in Beloved of the Sky, Carr reaches her full potential as an artist.

Debon’s illustrations perfectly capture Carr’s determined, eccentric character and the times she lived in. Readers will be delighted with the depictions of the streets of Paris, Carr’s caravan and pet monkey, and the natural world that inspired her.

Emily Carr was one of the few famous women painters of her generation, and today her work is being exhibited with and compared to that of Georgia O’Keeffe and Frida Kahlo. In this original picture book, Nicolas Debon traces Carr’s life through four of her best paintings. The first part, named after the painting Cedar House, shows her first sketching trip to a remote village, where she discovers West Coast native life and art. Autumn in France depicts Carr at work in a Paris art studio and immersing herself in the "New Art" of Chagall, Matisse, and Picasso. In Silhouette, her paintings are exhibited at the National Gallery and she meets with artists in the Group of Seven. Finally, in Beloved of the Sky, Carr reaches her full potential as an artist.

Debon’s illustrations perfectly capture Carr’s determined, eccentric character and the times she lived in. Readers will be delighted with the depictions of the streets of Paris, Carr’s caravan and pet monkey, and the natural world that inspired her.

Janice DeLong - Children's Literature

Format, paper quality, and illustration combine to create a visual biography of a painter as unique as the volume itself. Selected works represent four distinct periods in Carr's life. Born in 1871 in Victoria, British Columbia, Emily was the youngest of five sisters. From the age of eight, art and nature were driving passions. At the age of twenty-seven, she visited a missionary friend and came face to face with West Coast natives. Emily was impressed by the spiritual oneness with nature expressed by the tribe. This period is depicted in " Cedar House." After leaving the Canadian coast, Carr continued her studies in Europe. "Autumn in France" represents this time in her life. In Paris, Emily broadened her knowledge of her craft, but city life was traumatic for the nature-loving lady. Upon returning to her native land, Carr taught art in her own studio. Regrettably, she was unsuccessful in selling enough of her work to devote her full time to painting, This period is represented by "Silhouette" which reflects her station in life, just before being discovered by the influential Group of Seven. The final painting, "Beloved of the Sky," reflects her final years. In her mid-fifties, Carr had become sufficiently successful to go into the forests with her pet monkey and her beloved sheep dogs and paint nature as she felt it, both aesthetically and spiritually. 2003, Groundwood Books/Douglas & McIntyre, Ages 12 to 18.