The Artist Who Painted a Blue Horse

by Eric Carle, Eric Carle (Illustrator)

Overview

From the creator of The Very Hungry Caterpillar comes a brilliant new Eric Carle board book for the artist in us all.

Every child has an artist inside them, and this vibrant picture book from Eric Carle will help let it out. The artist in this book paints the world as he sees it, just like a child. There's a red crocodile, an orange elephant, a purple fox and a polka-dotted donkey. More than anything, there's imagination. Filled with some of the most magnificently colorful animals of Eric Carle's career, this new board book edition is a tribute to the creative life and celebrates the power of art.

Praise for The Artist Who Painted A Blue Horse 

* "A testimony to Carle's gifts..." — Publishers Weekly, starred review

* "Simple and splendid." — Booklist, starred review

"Another masterpiece from a master artist." — School Library Journal

 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780399257131
Publisher:	Penguin Young Readers Group
Publication date:	10/04/2011
Series:	World of Eric Carle Series
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	9.20(w) x 12.10(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	3 - 5 Years

About the Author

Eric Carle is acclaimed and beloved as the creator of brilliantly illustrated and innovatively designed picture books for very young children. His best-known work, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, has been translated into 70 languages and sold over 55 million copies. Carle illustrated more than seventy books, many best sellers, most of which he also wrote, and more than 170 million copies of his books have sold around the world. In 2003, Carle received the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award (now called the Children’s Literature Legacy Award) for lifetime achievement in children's literature. In 2002, Eric and his wife, Barbara, cofounded The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art (www.carlemuseum.org) in Amherst, Massachusetts, a 40,000-square-foot space dedicated to the celebration of picture books and picture book illustrations from around the world, underscoring the cultural, historical, and artistic significance of picture books and their art form. Eric Carle passed away in May 2021 at the age of 91. His work remains an important influence on artists and illustrators at work today. www.eric-carle.com

Hometown:

Northampton, Massachusetts and the Berkshires

Date of Birth:

June 25, 1929

Place of Birth:

Syracuse, New York

Education:

Akademie der bildenden Künste, Stuttgart, 1946-50

Website:

http://www.eric-carle.com/

Editorial Reviews

The Blaue Reiter painter Franz Marc had his art banned by the Nazis, after he died at 36 in WWI. In his first book in more than four years, Carle does not tell Marc’s story; he simply assumes his persona. “I am an artist,” a mop-headed man says, “and I paint... “a blue horse and... a red crocodile and...” and the series continues, each animal dominating its spread. While Carle’s creatures are constructed from his familiar, brilliantly colored painted-paper shapes, it is the strength and sinew of their forms that impresses—not coincidentally, the quality that distinguishes Marc’s originals (two are reprinted on the final pages). As the book progresses, the colors of the animals stray farther and farther from reality (there’s a purple fox and a polka-dot donkey), all but daring readers to think outside the box. “I am a good artist,” the man declares in closing, expressing the satisfaction that comes from using one’s creative powers to the fullest. An homage to Marc becomes testimony to Carle’s gifts, too. A short afterword about Marc’s life is included. Ages 3–5. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

PreS-Gr 2—Carle has constructed full-page images of animals in creative colors, beginning with a blue horse and culminating with a polka-dot donkey. The text begins, "I am an artist and I paint…" with each page displaying a different animal labeled with its name and color. The artist appears very pleased with his cheerful creations. Each page turn reveals one remarkable creature after another, and children will be filled with anticipation and surprise as they follow along. A concluding note explains that the artist in the book was inspired by Franz Marc, whose work, like that of other "degenerate artists," was banned by the Nazi regime. A reproduction of Marc's Horse and Yellow Cow is included. Carle's collages include brightly painted papers, custom cut and assembled to represent imaginative, childlike images. Adults will appreciate the connection between Carle and Marc while children will savor the simplicity and predictability of this book. Another masterpiece from a master artist.—Diane Antezzo, Ridgefield Library, CT

School Library Journal

This bright new entry by an old pro should find a place on the long shelf of picture books about animals and colors.

A narrator-artist appears at the beginning and end, confidently wielding a brush. Each spread in between showcases a single large, arresting animal portrait. The child-friendly theme features fanciful coloring: blue horse, pink rabbit, purple fox. Although the narrator claims specifically to "paint" each one, the illustrations are actually made from painted tissue-paper collage, which allows for stylized sharp edges and a lively choppiness. To emphasize the bold bushiness of the green lion's mane and the thick, rugged armor on the dark-red crocodile, Carle pulls a tool through wet paint, leaving thick patterned lines. The textured, yellow-and-orange cow's body reveals traces of darkness showing through from the night-sky background of black and green-blue. Fans of animals, color recognition or shouting out what's unusual will laugh at each creature's delightfully preposterous color. An author's note pays homage to Franz Marc, a German painter born in 1880, and reproduces two pieces: Blue Horse I and Yellow Cow. The target audience here will find the concept of a tribute to a fine artist too abstract, but Marc's colorful pieces themselves might well hold interest, with adult encouragement.

Eye-catching fun. (author's note) (Picture book. 2-5)

Kirkus Reviews