Review by Booklist Review
Following the same format as Masterpieces Up Close (2016), d'Harcourt this time offers little ones an engaging seek-and-find activity while simultaneously providing a chronological survey of key moments in art history. Beginning with an Egyptian papyrus scroll from fourteenth-century BCE, d'Harcourt features one large-format, full-color reproduction of a painting per two-page spread, with 10 images to find in each one. Each of the paintings is dense with detail, and the images to find range from fairly easy, like a horse in a Flemish tapestry, to quite difficult, like an individual letter in a scroll of Arabic calligraphy, or a particular splatter in one of Jackson Pollock's action paintings. After the artwork, d'Harcourt provides a brief explanation of why each selection is pivotal to art history. The final pages reveal the answers under flaps, which also feature short biographies of each of the painters. Though kids might skip over the closing text, they will certainly be poring over the paintings and getting a sneaky lesson in art history while they're at it.--Hunter, Sarah Copyright 2017 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 2-6-A fresh look at art history with an "I Spy"-like twist. D'Harcourt urges kids to look closely at each picture and to pay special attention to the finer points. ("When you look at great works of art up close, you discover that they're teeming with tiny details.") Twenty-three moments in art history, beginning with Egyptian papyrus circa 1300 BCE and ending with Jackson Pollock in 1952, are represented in this oversize full-color volume. Each featured masterpiece is reproduced over a spread and accompanied by circular sidebars that spotlight a different element, figure, object, or abstraction. The artist, title, and date are included at the bottom of each spread, but picture interpretation is left to readers. The back matter contains further historical context about the art movements represented, followed by lift-the-flap keys of each painting with biographical information on the artists of each work and number clues to the blown-up details. The engagement of multiple senses in the learning process encourages a unique experience with art. VERDICT An eye-catching book to support the introduction of art history and analyzing images.-Jessica Cline, New York Public Library © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
The game "I Spy" turns to art in this large-format book, which asks readers to find nine or more details in each of twenty-three masterpieces, from an Egyptian papyrus scroll to a Jackson Pollock "action painting." This reissued edition features excellent art reproductions; a lift-the-flap answer key is provided at book's end, as is information about each work's creator(s) and place in history. (c) Copyright 2018. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Art appreciation, taught with a puzzle element.With an 11-by-15-inch trim size, this impressive volume opens to spreads almost 2 feet across, each featuring one piece of fine art. Outside every artwork's border float 10 to 12 small circles, each circle reproducing a detail from that spread's spotlighted piece. The charge to readers: locate each detail's location in the full piece. Although this structurally recalls Martin Handford's Where's Waldo, the chance to pore over high-quality reproductions of complex and varied masterpieces strongly elevates this search in both appeal and sophistication. Short essays at the end discuss the works' genres, contexts, and media. There's also an answer key. Of the 23 pieces, Jackson Pollock's Convergence makes the hardest puzzle because of its complete abstraction and close, frenetic squiggles of paint; the others either are representational (the Aztec manuscript Codex Borbonicus; Pierre-Auguste Renoir's Bal du moulin de la Galette) or feature distinct, identifiable shapes (Pablo Picasso's Guernica, black-and-white and stunning in this big, glossy format). Each isolated detail appears slightly larger than in the main piece, enhancing understanding; for example, Jan Van Eyck's Madonna with Canon van der Paele magnifies an eye, emphasizing that facial expression's complexity. Excellent for art lovers and for potential art lovers; both will be hooked by the search. (answer key, locations of art) (Nonfiction. 6-13) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
