Impressionist Art

This entry in the Off the Wall Museum Guides for Kids series is a pocket-sized offering of tasty art tidbits, but the book may actually prove more useful after the field trip, in the classroom or at home, than in the museum--most provide plenty of visual and printed stimulus during a visit. This volume covers Impressionists such as Manet, Degas, and Cassatt, who painted indoors; Pissaro, Monet, and Renoir, who hauled their easels outdoors; and Post-Impressionists such as van Gogh, Gaugin, and Seurat. A brief biography appears for each painter as are tips on how to look at his or her work, e.g., ""Look for the little commas that are typical of Renoir's feathery brush work."" Small reproductions are included to give readers a general idea of an artist's style. A lot of other interesting facts are included, e.g., the notion that without the invention of tubes of paints, the Impressionists might never have existed, because they could not have carted their painting gear around. After a trip to a museum, this little book makes a great wrap-up, with suggestions for activities and snappy marginalia to get children to think about what they've seen.