Books in Great Art for Kids series

The striking, vibrant paintings of Picasso are perfect for engaging developing minds while fostering children's love of art. In this board book, Picasso's experimentation with geometry in cubist masterpieces such as Head and Woman with a Blue Beret and Fur Collar are showcased in full-color reproductions alongside seven other works depicting families, children, and circus scenes. Picasso is only one artist represented in the six-book series entitled Great Art for Kids. Stressing the value of art appreciation, the series provides artistic pieces in a toddler-friendly board-book format. A parents' guide in the back of the book provides interesting facts about the artist's life and works, as well as projects for child prodigies.

What do children hope to create when they put pencil to paper? An accurate likeness of the things they see, of course. With this imaginative, informative, and amply illustrated guide to drawing, it's amazingly easy for kids to make those art dreams come true. After a brief overview of tools and materials, the entertaining hands-on activities begin with contour drawing techniques. With the help of lots of exercises, budding artists will learn the basic elements of shapes (lines, dots, circles) and see how to combine them to make familiar forms. They'll find out how to produce the illusion of volume with shading techniques; create perspective; accurately recreate landscapes, people, animals, and nature; develop interesting compositions; and more.

Drawing in Color, the newest addition to the critically acclaimed Art for Kids collection, teaches children indispensable tricks and techniques for adding a rainbow of color to their work. It’s an entertaining combination of practical information and hands-on exercises. Budding artists will see how easy it can be to create original, vivid pictures using everything from colored pencils and markers to watercolor, pastel, and paint.

Any child who can make a stick figure can learn to create funny cartoons--and this enjoyably illustrated guide tells them exactly how. Written by professional cartoonist Art Roche, it gives kids lots of hands-on opportunities to turn their creative ideas into delightfully drawn reality. The emphasis is on doing original illustrations and developing a personal vision, rather than tracing or copying someone else's style; after all, cartooning is a free and fun form, so there's no "wrong" way to draw one. Roche also includes plenty of information that other children's how-to books overlook, including advice on writing jokes, composing panels, and getting published. In short, it addresses every step of the process, from buying a pencil to seeing the cartoons in print.