The Usborne Art Treasury Hardcover – January 1, 2007

I bought this book to use for art lessons/projects with my grandkids age 8,8,&10. It has a short bio of an artist, an example of their work, and then simple instructions to create your own work. We’ve done two so far, Klee and Picasso. I found some short, simple videos about the artists to supplement the bio in the book, plus show the kids more examples of the artists’ work. Once I got them all inspired, I gave them supplies, and they got to work creating their own works. As a very non-artistic person, I found this book gave me just enough inspiration and instruction to serve as a jumping off point to be able to confidently lead the kids through creating their own art. But the best part is seeing how engaged the kids have been as they have created their own beautiful artwork. This book is just what I needed to be able to give them a foundation in art.

Many fun projects with facts about different artists. Great book!

What a cool art book!! I bought this for y 2 and 5 year old boys, and the age does say 9 and up, so obviously, they aren't going to make it exactly as shown. We have done 1 project so far (the Starry Night one), and I read about Van Gogh to them from the book. FYI--I was surprised it mentions him going to an asylum and killing himself, so I skipped a bit of that, as my little ones don't need to know about that yet. But I guess for 9 and up, they would get that more. But I love how it takes a well known (and some lesser known) piece of art, talks about it, takes the key components and puts them into terms a child can replicate. You get the essence of something without having to have the experience or skill level. I only wish I had more time with my kindergartener to do more of these (school takes up so much time.)! If you are a home schooler, or art teacher, I think there are some great ideas in here.

I have bought numerous art books over the years for homeschooling, but the Usborne Art Treasury book is by far one of my favorites (& is the best of all the Usborne art books to date IMO)! Full page photographs of great artworks, information on the artists who made them, and detailed step-by-step instructions (with color pictures)on how to make projects inspired by those masters, makes this book a hit! I love the variety of artists, styles, and mediums they chose to include in this book. The very doable and fun projects use basic art/craft supplies which is a huge plus. We focused on the older pieces last year (Hokusi, tiles, Shen Quan) as well as a few botany related projects (Rousseau, Georgia O'Keeffe). This year I am really looking forward to the more modern inspired pieces (Giacometti, Long, Pollock, Hirst, etc.). A must have art resource! You won't be sorry with this purchase.

This is a fantastic book! My granddaughter, age 9, has a talent for art. As a retired teacher, I wanted a book to encourage her and develop her art skills. Along with her 6 year-old brother, the three of us put on our art clothes, cleared the dining room and went to work - first with Jackson Pollack. Her brother never left Pollack but after she finished her dribbling, she turned to Georgia O'Keefe's red poppies and created a masterpiece. She painted the paper bright red, let it dry, then carefully inked in a flower in O'Keefe's style. After it dried, she cut it out and used heavy yellow paint for the flower center. It was fit to frame. I love the book's methodology, introducing the artist, showing examples, and then offering simplified directions. This is indeed a treasure!

all the Usborne books are good. the pictures are large and colorful and the directions are simple and clear.

This is a wonderful children's book for anyone wanting to learn more about such great artists as Jackson Pollock, Georgia O'Keefe, Vincent Van Gogh, and more. I teach an after-school art class, and I have used many of the lessons in this book with great success. Each lesson focuses on one great work of art, gives an interesting overview of the artist's life, then gives clear and simple directions on how to create a masterpiece using the artist's work as inspiration. The projects are fun for kids, and encourage them to use various media such as paints, oil pastels, cut paper, even sculptures made with aluminum foil.

This book is our school district's "one book" choice of the year, meaning that it is recommended to families from K-12 to purchase and use together. The book offers stories about a number of well-known works of art and then presents a project using similar techniques for the reader to try. Most can be done with very basic and inexpensive supplies, many with items you can recycle from what you have on hand. We bought it with the Usborne Big Book of Things to Draw, and both were excellent purchases.