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Books published by publisher Prestel

  • 13 Paintings Children Should Know

    Angela Wenzel

    Hardcover (Prestel, Oct. 24, 2009)
    People of all ages are fascinated by Mona Lisa’s beguiling smile, Van Gogh’s hypnotic night sky, and Frida Kahlo’s depiction of herself with a monkey. These paintings and ten others are featured in the book in large reproductions with accompanying details. The readable text offers biographical information about each artist and important facts about the painting’s technical and historical aspects. Games, quizzes, and coloring exercises provide additional opportunities for young readers to interact with the artworks, while a timeline throughout the book allows for easy historical orientation. Readers will return again and again to these works, which provide continued opportunities for contemplation and discovery.
  • 13 Art Mysteries Children Should Know

    Angela Wenzel

    Hardcover (Prestel, June 20, 2011)
    In this intriguing book, young readers will be introduced to the unsolved mysteries behind some of the world’s greatest art and artists.For as long as people have been viewing the masterpieces in this book, they’ve been asking the same questions: Why is the Mona Lisa smiling? Who was that girl with the pearl earring? What made Magritte’s reading woman so frightened? These and other great mysteries of the art world are explored in this colorful, fun, and informative children’s book. Each masterpiece is presented in a double page spread with stunning reproductions, biographical information about the artist, historical context and the pressing questions themselves. From Bosch to Banksy, the mysterious life of Caravaggio to the strange room in Velazques’ Las Meninas, Surrealism to stolen art―young readers’ interests in some of the world’s great masterpieces will be piqued by the puzzles they offer and that remain unsolved to this day.
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  • 13 Architects Children Should Know

    Florian Heine

    Hardcover (Prestel, Sept. 12, 2014)
    This lively and engaging volume in Prestel’s successful “Children Should Know” series opens a door into the fascinating world of architecture. Buildings of every shape and size, and from all corners of the world, populate this colorful and beautifully produced book that introduces children to history’s most iconic architectural feats and the people behind them. In lively illustrated spreads, young readers will learn how Christopher Wren reconstructed an 11th-century cathedral after London’s great fire of 1666 to become the St Paul’s Cathedral that we know today, and how its dome survived the Blitz. They will find out how Thomas Jefferson, in building his plantation, Monticello, created a new architecture for a new nation. They will be introduced to the genius of Frank Lloyd Wright, Le Corbusier, Mies van der Rohe, and Zaha Hadid and can examine in detail the wonders of the Eiffel Tower, the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain, and Rome’s most beautiful museum. The book proceeds chronologically, accompanied by a timeline to offer helpful historical context. Each architect’s entry includes a concise biography, illustrations of major works, and lively texts that speak directly to young readers. Additional information about the buildings pictured, suggestions for further reading, and online resources will satisfy the most curious minds.
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  • A Year in Art: The Activity Book

    Christiane Weidemann, Anne-Kathrin Funck, Doris Kutschbach

    Hardcover (Prestel, Aug. 11, 2015)
    Now available in a new edition, this unique book allows kids to interactively explore the world’s great masterpieces through games, puzzles, coloring, and other activities. What better way to learn about art than to create your ownmasterpiece alongside another, find hidden details that add toan understanding of the artwork, read fascinating stories abouthow the work came to be created, or take an entertaining quizthat leads to a deeper appreciation of techniques and themes.This beautifully designed activity book introduces children tomany of the world’s greatest artworks―ranging from Africanmasks and Japanese prints to European paintings and modernart. Hands-on projects are sure to spark children’s imaginationswhile imparting important knowledge that will serve them wellas they grow older. The book is perfect for all kinds of drawingand the exquisite reproductions will impress kids of all ages.Whether used at home or in a classroom, this engaging andenriching book will delight children, their parents, and teacherswith its endless opportunities to create and learn about art.
  • The Great Wave: A Children's Book Inspired by Hokusai

    Veronique Massenot, Bruno Pilorget

    Hardcover (Prestel, May 20, 2011)
    Hokusai’s classic woodcut of a majestic wave becomes the starting point for a storybook children will want to read again and again.On a stormy winter’s day, a baby boy, Naoki, is swept into a fisherman’s boat by a great wave. Years pass, but still Naoki does not grow. Must he return to the ocean in order to become a young man? The answer arrives in the form of a mythic fish. Japanese artist Hokusai is one of the world’s most celebrated printmakers. His famous woodcut, “The Great Wave,” epitomizes the artist’s characteristic techniques and themes. In this children’s book, the artist’s masterpiece is the genesis for a simple but compelling story, beautifully illustrated in pictures that recall Hokusai’s brilliant use of detail, perspective and color. A stunning reproduction of the woodcut itself is featured in the book, supplemented by information about the artist and his work. At once modern and classic, The Great Wave introduces young readers to a beloved artist and his timeless portrayals of nature and transformation.
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  • Roy Lichtenstein Coloring Book

    Prestel Publishing

    Paperback (Prestel, Feb. 25, 2013)
    Big art for little hands, these enchanting acti vity books allow young artists to explore the world's masterpieces on their own terms and with plenty of space to color outside the lines.
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  • The Little Hippo: A Children's Book Inspired by Egyptian Art

    Geraldine Elschner, Anja Klauss

    Hardcover (Prestel, Sept. 16, 2014)
    Drawing on ancient Egyptian sculptures seen in museums around the world, this enchanting story for children reveals the powerful connection between Egyptians and the hippopotami that inhabited the Nile. To the ancient Egyptians, the hippopotamus was one of the most dangerous animals in their world. The huge creatures were a hazard for small fishing boats and other river craft. But in this delightful story, a young boy befriends a little hippo and together they live out their days along the banks of the Nile. After many years, when the boy’s life comes to an end, the hippo finds himself in a strange world populated with deserts, cities, forests, and finally a museum where he is reunited with his friends. Early Egyptian civilization has long been a source of curiosity and fascination for children. Through this simple, moving, and beautifully illustrated story young readers will discover how and why the hippopotamus was such an important figure in that ancient world.
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  • The Egg

    Britta Teckentrup

    Hardcover (Prestel, April 2, 2017)
    Beautiful, whimsical, and entertaining, this book of illustrations by Britta Teckentrup shows eggs in all their fragility, complexity, and variety. Is there anything as simple as an egg? Is there anything as complex? In this gorgeous picture book, Britta Teckentrup portrays eggs through the eyes of an artist. From hummingbirds to the extinct elephant bird, illustrations of the avian world’s smallest and largest eggs demonstrate the variety present in nature. Pastel studies explore the rainbow of soft colors and intricate patterns that make eggs of common birds seem incredibly striking. In Teckentrup’s hands, a scattering of broken egg shells become abstract art; a nest of unhatched eggs suggest the possibility and promise of life. Her studies of songbirds and nests are themselves beautifully composed works of color and line. A lovely meditation on the diversity of eggs, this magnificent book offers hours of lingering pleasure, and becomes fertile ground for conversation and imagination.
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  • Coloring Book Dali

    Doris Kutschbach

    Paperback (Prestel, Sept. 12, 2007)
    Big art for little hands, these enchanting activity books allow young artists to explore the world’s masterpieces on their own terms and with plenty of space to color outside the lines.
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  • Thomas Joshua Cooper: The World's Edge

    Michael Govan, Rebecca Morse, Thomas Joshua Cooper, Anne Lyden, Christie Davis

    Hardcover (Prestel, Sept. 17, 2019)
    This book showcases Thomas Joshua Cooper's monumental forty-five year career as a landscape photographer.Working solely with an 1898 Agfa field camera, Thomas Joshua Cooper has established himself as one of the foremost photographers of our time. His magnificent black-and-white seascapes explore specific points on the globe--often at the most remote areas, where sea and land meet. Fans of Cooper's Atlas project, in which he has charted the Atlantic Basin, will be thrilled to find a generous selection of those images here--abstractions ranging from pitch black to clear white, and subtle gradations in between. Exquisitely reproduced, these photographs reveal the coastlines of the five continents that encircle the Atlantic Ocean. This volume also features images that deal with themes such as the earth's changing environment, historical narratives, and North America's great rivers and their sources. Enhancing this book are an essay by Michael Govan; biographies of the artist by Rebecca Morse and Anne Lyden, International Photography Curator at the National Galleries of Scotland; and a chronicle of the Atlas project by Christie Davis of the Lannan Foundation. Poems by Robinson Jeffers and Theodore Roethke round out this retrospective book of one of the most celebrated and distinctive photographers working today.Published with Los Angeles County Museum of Art
  • Creatures of the Deep: The Pop-up Book

    Ernst Haeckel, Maike Biederstaedt

    Hardcover (Prestel, Nov. 21, 2016)
    The magnificent prints of Ernst Haeckel, who captured the amazing forms of the natural world, spring to life in this exciting pop-up book that reveals the vibrant intricacy of his work. The book Art Forms in Nature is a collection of prints, made by the scientist Ernst Haeckel, of an enormous variety of flora andfauna from the sea–including microscopic Radiolaria, starfish,and jelly fish. Since Prestel published it in 1998, the book hasbeen a favorite with artists, designers, illustrators, and anyonewho enjoys the wondrous forms of the natural world. Nowpaper engineer Maike Biederstaedt has transformed Haeckel’stranscendent work into a three-dimensional book that allowsreaders to appreciate Haeckel’s vivid colors, exceptionalprecision, and fascination with patterns and geometry. Thisstunning book features seven pop-ups that allow readers tosee nature’s brilliance the way that Haeckel did―as marvelous,mathematically based creations that support his theory of theunity of all living things. Certain to appeal to his huge variety offans, this pop-up version of a timeless classic will be treasuredfor years to come.
  • Keith Haring: I Wish I Didn't Have to Sleep

    Desiree La Valette, David Stark, Gerdt Fehrle

    Paperback (Prestel, Nov. 14, 2014)
    Whether you’re young or just young at heart, this collection of Keith Haring’s playful artwork will help you see his paintings through fresh eyes. Children’s reactions to art can be incredibly insightful and few artists attract a young audience as much as Keith Haring, who used thick black lines, bright colors, and striking symbols to create paintings that are as open to interpretation as they are joyful and fun. This engaging book records children’s reactions to Haring’s most imaginative drawings, and the results are as unpredictable and profound as the work itself. Along the way, the book encourages its readers to let their own imaginations run wild. By exploring Haring’s life, technique, and creativity, the book will inspire readers of all ages to express themselves, whether through art, poetry, or simply saying what is on their minds.
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