Author: Sherry Linger Kaier
ISBN 978-0-9843166-5

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With simple text and charming illustrations that  reinterpret some of the world’s greatest artists, author and illustrator Sherry Linger Kaier  demystifies abstract art for her young  readers in An Arty Adventure.    Her protagonist , Ava Noodlenicker  faces a problem familiar to anyone – and I don’t mean just children - who has felt at once enthralled and intimidated by the  great masters . She attempts to mimic their styles as a way to improve her own art, but  her frustration when she fails begins to affect her love for the craft. Worse, her teacher expects  her to create a drawing in her own unique style. How, Ava wonders, can she ever find her own style , when she can’t even copy the masters?

But help is at hand, for a dream soon leads her on a journey into a world where art grows on trees, and some of the most significant schools of thought  in modern art.  Through pictures, verse and prose, she explores the concepts that inspired some of the world’s most famous artists, from the Impressionists to the  Abstract Expressionists. By the end of this colourful journey, Ava  overcomes her fears regarding art. But more importantly, she  realizes  the need to experiment and find her original style. “To yourself you must be true”, Kaier gently points out. “Pursue the dreams that live in you.” And sure enough, Ava does find her dream s and her style ,  with a picture for her class assignment that is both unique and inspired.

Kaier does a commendable job of taking a complex subject and breaking it down for readers of all ages.  She uses a simple but remarkably innovative technique  to  demonstrate the basic principles of each style ; the same image  – a girl with a bunch of sunflowers,  standing before a rhododendron bush- is drawn in each of the  styles discussed. So the Impressionist version focuses on the play of light on the objects in the frame; the Post Impressionist features a swirling Van Gogh sky; and the Surrealist version is a cheerful swirl of eyes and jaunty surfing sunflowers that even Dali would approve of. Kaier doffs her hat at Seurat , Gaugin  and even  Picasso, with the  cheeky Cubist study that graces the cover of this book.  In addition, simple verses highlight the salient features of each style – the Fauvists’ use of patterns and startlingly vivid colours, for instance,  (‘The Fauves’ colors, so bright and unreal, give us patterns with striking appeal.”) or the Impressionist preoccupation with light ( “Observing shades from dawn ‘til night, Impressionists paint spots of light.) 

An Arty Adventure is a great teaching aid , both as a primer on art and  its reminder that art is about self expression and experimentation , not predefined rules.  

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