Overview
An alphabet of pictures with a story in common. Some are by illustrators, others are by artists whose pictures are usually seen in art galleries. From them, Quentin Blake shows how stories can be told around any picture.Provides guidance for studying paintings and illustrations from the National Gallery in London to find the story within each.
Synopsis
What’s in a painting, or an illustration? Renowned artist Quentin Blake wants to know, and to encourage young readers to explore the question, too. In Tell Me a Picture, he chooses 26 works for the stories they tell. Uccello’s grand and gorgeous Saint George and the Dragon is here, as well as works by 20th-century talents like painter Edward Hopper and illustrator Roberto Innocenti. In Tell Me a Picture, Blake's own quirky characters introduce each image, pointing out details and asking questions, encouraging engagement. Also here are short introductions to each artist and work, along with suggestions for helping children think about art without being intimidated.
Ken Marantz and Sylvia Marantz - Children's Literature
The alphabet is the frame on which Blake, Britain's Children's Laureate, builds an introduction to art appreciation through pictures that tell a story. The paintings, by artists whose names begin with the letters A to Z, were chosen by Blake for an exhibition at the National Gallery of Art in London. They include examples of both "fine art" and illustrations, each with its own "flavor," but all having a story basis. Each is introduced by a group of kids drawn by Blake and followed by their usually humorous comments, reactions, and questions. The chosen works range from Daumier's "Don Quixote and Sancho Panza" to Innocenti's illustration for Pinocchio; from an x-ray of a still life painting to a scene from Zwerger's Dwarf Nose. The animated cartoony drawings of the appealing children, with their honest words as the only text, come before and after each picture, with the picture itself standing alone on the page spread so that viewers can let their "imagination meet the imagination of the artist." This is an opportunity to discover artists previously unknown, while noting the parallels between the art in museums and that in picture books. A final note encourages viewers in their looking. Further details on each art work, its creator and location follow. 2003 (orig. 2001), Millbrook Press, Ages 8 up.
Editorials
Children's Literature
The alphabet is the frame on which Blake, Britain's Children's Laureate, builds an introduction to art appreciation through pictures that tell a story. The paintings, by artists whose names begin with the letters A to Z, were chosen by Blake for an exhibition at the National Gallery of Art in London. They include examples of both "fine art" and illustrations, each with its own "flavor," but all having a story basis. Each is introduced by a group of kids drawn by Blake and followed by their usually humorous comments, reactions, and questions. The chosen works range from Daumier's "Don Quixote and Sancho Panza" to Innocenti's illustration for Pinocchio; from an x-ray of a still life painting to a scene from Zwerger's Dwarf Nose. The animated cartoony drawings of the appealing children, with their honest words as the only text, come before and after each picture, with the picture itself standing alone on the page spread so that viewers can let their "imagination meet the imagination of the artist." This is an opportunity to discover artists previously unknown, while noting the parallels between the art in museums and that in picture books. A final note encourages viewers in their looking. Further details on each art work, its creator and location follow. 2003 (orig. 2001), Millbrook Press, Ages 8 up.— Ken Marantz and Sylvia Marantz