Another glorious art exploration now from Catherine De Duve as we take a closer look at the life and work of Gustave Caillebotte...

Two fabulous artists, two brilliant books and one fantastic range from Happy Museum. Catherine De Duve's fabulous "Little" art series...

It's a delight to see that there are fantastic ranges of books that help children develop an appreciation of art from an early age. As most artists will tell you, often drawing or painting things is a great way to learn about colour, light and shade and how to develop your own art skills - as well as falling in love with the world of art and the fascinating artists who have painted the greatest works of art on the planet.

In "The Little Velasquez", part of the Colour Zen / Colour and Learn With... range by Catherine De Duve, Children are encouraged to learn about the life and works of Velasquez through exploration of some of his most famous portraits. The book's format is almost pocket sized, making it perfect for tucking into a bag or satchel when your little ones are off to visit relatives, or off for a day out on the train when colouring and activity books are worth their weight in gold.

Catherine's fab range always includes lots of facts and figures about each painter, so children will be encouraged to learn more about Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez (phew, that's a mouthful!) and his incredible gift for realistic portraiture.

Charlotte's best bit: The "funny" portrait of Phillip IV in his armour

Daddy's Favourite bit: A detailed and interesting activity book based around one of the most incredible artists of the Spanish "Golden Age" - a great jumping off point for kids who want to learn more about art and artists through impressive colouring and activity ideas.

(Kindly sent to us for review by Happy Museum Publishing)

Catherine De Duve's fantastic introductory book series for youngsters interested in art and artists covers a wide range of subjects and art styles, and with "The Little Bonnard" we're off to the sunny South of France (we wish!) to visit one of the most influential and groundbreaking artists of the last two centuries.

Pierre Bonnard (Born in 1867, died in 1947) was a member of "Les Nabis", a group of post-impressionist artists. From his early career right through to his death, Bonnard was a pioneer of the use of colour and light in his paintings, mostly from memory, of a wide range of subjects.

His skills were incredible, and it's lovely to see a book crammed with a ton of facts about his life, his working surroundings and the characters he met and worked with during his career (including Toulouse Lautrec and Maurice Denis, another member of Les Nabis).

But the paintings speak loudest, with their incredible colours and use of light - brought to life here in Catherine's descriptive way ensuring that the book has a really wide range of age appeal (absolutely perfect for Charlotte who is well and truly on the path of loving learning about art and artists and swiftly identifying her favourites).

A brilliant learning resource but also a fascinating book detailing the story of Bonnard's life.


Charlotte's best bit: Bonnard's beautiful paintings of Paris

Daddy's Favourite bit: This book looks deceptively tiny and thin but crammed into its innards is a wealth of knowledge about a truly amazing artist. Look out for more in Catherine's "Little" series detailing the lives and works of other artists too!

(Kindly sent to us for review by GMC / Happy Museum)