Art Appreciation for Kids

Children as young as preschool age can begin learning to appreciate art. The following media can help your children learn about great works of art, as well as the artists who created them. Many of the items include hands- on activities.

Nonfiction Books

The American Eye: Eleven Artists of the 20th Century by Jan Greenberg & Sandra Jordan: Discusses the work of American artists Arthur Dove, Georgia O'Keeffe, Edward Hopper, Thomas Hart Benton, Stuart Davis, Romare Bearden, Isamu Noguchi, David Smith, Jackson Pollock, Andy Warhol and Eva Hesse.

Art Fraud Detective by Anna Nilsen: A spot-the-difference game, mystery story and art book in which readers try to tell which paintings are genuine and which are forgeries.

A Bird or Two: A Story about Henri Matisse by Bijou Le Tord: Simple text and bright illustrations describe the work of French painter, Henri Matisse, particularly his joyful use of color.

A Child's Book of Play in Art: Great Pictures, Great Fun by Lucy Micklethwait: A collection of famous works of art with ideas for accompanying activities for young children, such as copying patterns, making up stories, and matching.

Discovering Great Artists: Hands-on Art for Children in the Styles of the Great Masters by MaryAnn F. Kohl: Offers 110 unique art activities for children to experience the styles and techniques of the great masters. Includes a brief biography of each artist.

I Spy a Freight Train: Transportation in Art by Lucy Micklethwait: Draws the viewer's eye to notice a transportation-related object in each of the well-known paintings represented in this work.

I Spy a Lion : Animals in Art by Lucy Micklethwait: Encourages children to find animals in well-known paintings.

Monet and the Impressionists for Kids: Their Lives and Ideas, 21Activities by Carol Sabbeth: Discusses the 19th-century French art movement known as Impressionism, focusing on the works of Monet, Renoir, Degas, Cassatt, Cezanne, Gauguin and Seurat. Includes related projects and activities.

Oxford First Book of Art by Gillian Wolfe: An introduction to the joys of art. It includes a varied collection of images - paintings, drawings, sculptures and textiles - from all around the world and down through the ages

Surrealism by Linda Bolton: Explores the strange, dreamlike world of the surrealists - a group of artists whose bizarre work took the art world by storm in the 1920s and 1930s.

Picture Books

Katie and the Mona Lisa by James Mayhew: At the art museum, while her grandmother dozes, Katie steps into the painting of the Mona Lisa and together they have adventures with the characters from four other well-known Renaissance paintings. Includes information about the artists.

Katie and the Sunflowers by James Mayhew: While visiting the art museum, Katie has an adventure stepping in and out of five paintings by Van Gogh, Gauguin and Cezanne. Includes information about Post-Impressionism and the particular paintings and artists in the story.

Katie Meets the Impressionists by James Mayhew: On a visit to the museum, Katie climbs into five Impressionist paintings and has wonderful adventures.

Once Upon a Lily Pad : Froggy Love in Monet's Garden by Joan Sweeney: Hector and Henriette, the most famous frogs in France, befriend an old painter in a battered straw hat named Monet.

Illustrated Fiction

Anna's Art Adventure by Bjorn Sortland: On her search for the art museum's bathroom, Anna meets famous artists, becomes part of some of their paintings, and makes her own art.

A Boy Named Giotto by Paolo Guarnieri: Eight-year-old Giotto the shepherd boy confesses his dream of becoming an artist to the painter, Cimabue, who teaches him how to make marvelous pigments from minerals, flowers and eggs, and takes him on as his pupil.

Camille and the Sunflowers: A Story about Vincent Van Gogh by Laurence Anholt: Despite the derision of their neighbors, a young French boy and his family befriend the lonely painter who comes to their town and begin to admire his unusual paintings.

Videos

Barry's Scrapbook: A Window into Art: Barry guides some children in how to look at art ; learn and sing about it ; and create art works with recyclables. For children aged 6-10.

Don't Eat the Pictures: Sesame Street at the Metropolitan Museum of Art: This musical follows the adventures of Big Bird, Snuffy, Cookie Monster and the rest of the Sesame Street gang as they find themselves accidentally locked in the Metropolitan Museum overnight.

CD-ROMs

Blue's Art Time Activities: Strengthen early art skills by helping Steve and Blue get ready for the Really Big Art show. Skills taught include color mixing, texture and composition, and recognition of shapes. Ages 3-6.

Make a Masterpiece: Use this program's tools, stickers, stencils and camera to create your own masterpieces. Ages 5-12.

With Open Eyes: From the Art Institute of Chicago: Full-screen pictures of over 200 works of art from The Art Institute of Chicago's world-class collection accompanied by audio clips, games and puzzles. Intuitively designed, this CD-ROM introduces children of all ages to wonderful works of art.

Websites

The Art Institute of Chicago: A comprehensive site including activities for kids and families, a gallery of the institute's famous collection, the museum shops, and much more.

Color Theory for Kids: Teaches kids to mix colors and put colors together using activities, games, examples of color schemes used by master artists, and student artwork.

The Detroit Institute of Arts: Information on the DIA's collections, programs and more.

Educational Web Adventures in Art & Art History: A series of educational games, simulations and learning modules designed to teach kids about art techniques and art history. Topics range from wildlife and Native American art, to art workshops and an interactive mystery which teaches kids about art history while they solve a case.

ThinkQuest's All About Art: Information on famous artists, styles of art, museums, art by kids, games, plus links to other art sites.

Web Gallery of Art: The Web Gallery of Art is a virtual museum of European painting and sculpture of the Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque periods (1150-1800). Also includes commentaries on pictures and biographies of artists.