Portrait of an Artist: Vincent van Gogh: Discover the Artist Behind the Masterpieces (Portrait of an Artist)

by Lucy Brownridge

Edith Carron (Illustrator)

A beautifully told art story for children, looking at  Vincent van Gogh's life through his masterpieces. Accompanied by stunning original illustrations from Edith Carron. 

★★★★★ - visually stunning account of Van Gogh's life
★★★★★ - Perfect introduction to the artist and his work
★★★★★ - A wonderful resource for parents and teachers.
★★★★★ - sensitively written

Vincent van Gogh was born in the Netherlands and today is one of the world's best-loved painters. But during his lifetime, Van Gogh struggled to find fame and fortune through his art, making very little money from his paintings, which now sell for millions of dollars. This book tells the story of Van Gogh's life through his own artworks, and shows how he came to create some of the most famous paintings in the world, including the Sunflowers and Starry Night. Learn about the importance of brotherly love, his struggle to find the right path and the lasting impact he had on the history of art in this book that brings his work to life. 
A Van Gogh masterpiece is featured on every spread. This art story also includes a closer look at 10 of Van Gogh's masterpieces at the back.

'A thoughtful and colourful biography' - Kirkus

• ISBN13: 9781786036469
• Publish Date: 3 September 2019
• Publish Status: Active
• Out of Print: 22 October 2021
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: Wide Eyed Editions
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 32
• Language: English

Reviews

[annieb123]

Originally published on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

Portrait of an Artist: Vincent van Gogh is a new biography of the artist aimed at young readers (6-10 years). Due out 3rd Sept 2019 from Quarto on their Wide Eyed Editions imprint, it's 32 pages and will be available in hardcover format.

It's always challenging to write a biography of a subject whose life was fraught with difficulties and illness and ended so tragically. The author manages to tell the story with truth and grace, noting of his death, that "later on that year, Vincent decided that he had had enough of being unwell". This is an appealing full color part of the Portrait of an Artist series including children's biographies for luminaries such as Kahlo, Monet, and Georgia O'Keeffe.

The factual events of Van Gogh's life are shown along with facsimile reproductions of his work. The end of the book also includes 10 of his best known works with a short interpretive paragraph about the symbolism and composition of the paintings.

This is a good support text for a classroom or library unit on artists, art appreciation, composition, and similar. This would also make a good selection for art interested youngsters and their families.

Four stars.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.