13 Art Movements Children Should Know (13 Children Should Know)

Product Description The latest volume in this successful series introduces young readers to major movements in art history—from Romanesque to Pop art. Filled with gorgeous color reproductions and packed with fascinating information, this beautiful book presents a chronological sampling of the world’s important artistic styles. Double-page spreads provide a detailed description of each movement, representative illustrations, and a timeline that places the artwork in its historical context. All of these elements are presented in a playful, eye-catching manner that will appeal to a wide range of young readers. The book also features numerous ideas for projects that kids can undertake themselves and offers helpful suggestions for learning more about each style. Children will find hours of fun reading that will equip them with essential knowledge—enhancing and deepening their understanding of art history and inspiring them in their own artistic endeavors. From School Library Journal Gr 6 Up—Educators and art-loving parents would agree with this book's title, though kids themselves might feel differently. The rare child who voluntarily peruses this work would learn as much by visiting a good art museum. Basic facts about each movement, which include Romanesque, impressionism, surrealism, cubism, and pop art, are offered in very brief, mostly double-spread chapters containing excellent color reproductions of representative works. However, there isn't enough information here for report writers. Entries begin with helpful features, such as fact boxes containing salient information on when these movements began and ended and subjects and characteristics of the artwork. Also useful are time lines that include artists who flourished during each period and historical, literary, and artistic events that occurred concurrently. Occasional "Good to Know" sidebars provide additional facts. Pointless "Crafts Ideas" and "Quizzes" are haphazardly distributed throughout, as are suggestions for further reading that do not include full bibliographic information. Oddly, in a book targeted to children, c. ("circa") and AD are not defined. Finger also neglects to identify the word medieval as referring to the Middle Ages and uses it interchangeably with Romanesque. The otherwise informative captions accompanying the reproductions rarely indicate the countries in which the owning museums are located, and some typos and misspellings add to the flaws. This title might find an audience in larger public library collections or in schools with art history units, but where budgets are limited, pass on this one.—Carol Goldman, Queens Library, NY Review "This installment in Prestel's successful art history series takes an audacious approach, focusing on the 13 important art styles in the history of Western civilization, beginning with Romanesque art found in medieval churches and continuing all the way to Andy Warhol's iconic pop art canvases." — Booklist