Vincent van Gogh

Rating:
Summary: Great Introduction to Van Gogh
Review: After introducing my students to art with "The Oxford First Book of Art" by Gillian Wolfe and deciding to do a project based on Van Gogh's "The Starry Night," my sixth-grade students wanted to know more about who Van Gogh was so I went to my local public library and found this book, handily available in both English and Spanish editions, which is of great benefit in a bilingual classroom. While the color paintings of Van Gogh and some of his contemporaries are beautifully reproduced in this book, the language level of the text is well beyond primary classrooms (1st through 3rd grade) and was very difficult for most of my intermediate (4th through 6th) students as well.

The book showed Van Gogh's development as an artist well and didn't gloss over some of the more controversial aspects of Van Gogh's life (he cut off one of his ears in a fit of depression and presented it to a local prostitute). Luckily for many of my ESL (English as a Second Language) students, the captions were brief enough for many of my students with developing English skills. The discussion of "The Starry Night" was particularly interesting since the book described Van Gogh's stay in the hospital (where he was while he painted this masterpiece) and what the painting may represent.

I recommend this book as a great introduction to Vincent Van Gogh and his art.

Review by: Maximillian Ben Hanan

Rating:
Summary: Recomiendo Este Libro Como Gran Introducción a Van Gogh
Review: Después de introducir a mis estudiantes al arte con libro "The Oxford First Book of Art" por Gillian Wolfe y el decidir hacer un proyecto del arte basado de la pinture "The Starry Night," de Van Gogh mis estudiantes del sexto-grado desearon saber más sobre quiénes era Van Gogh así que fui a mi biblioteca pública local y encontré este libro, disponible en ediciones inglesas y españolas, que está de gran ventaja en una salon bilingüe. Mientras que las pinturas del color de Van Gogh y algo de sus contemporáneos se reproducen maravillosamente en este libro, el nivel de la lengua del texto es bien más allá de los grados primarios (1ras a 3ro) y era muy difícil para la mayoría de mis (4tos con 6tos) estudiantes intermedios también.

El libro demostró el desarrollo de Van Gogh. Afortunadamente para muchos de mis estudiantes de ESL (ingleses como segunda lengua), los subtítulos eran bastante breve para muchos de mis estudiantes con desarrollar habilidades inglesas. La discusión de "The Starry Night" era particularmente interesante puesto que la estancia descrita libro de Van Gogh en el hospital donde él estaba mientras que él pintó esta obra maestra y qué la pintura puede representar.

Recomiendo este libro como gran introducción a Vincent Van Gogh y su arte.

Review por: Maximillian Ben Hanan

Rating:
Summary: Recomiendo Este Libro Como Gran Introducción a Van Gogh
Review: Después de introducir a mis estudiantes al arte con libro "The Oxford First Book of Art" por Gillian Wolfe y el decidir hacer un proyecto del arte basado de la pinture "The Starry Night," de Van Gogh mis estudiantes del sexto-grado desearon saber más sobre quiénes era Van Gogh así que fui a mi biblioteca pública local y encontré este libro, disponible en ediciones inglesas y españolas, que está de gran ventaja en una salon bilingüe. Mientras que las pinturas del color de Van Gogh y algo de sus contemporáneos se reproducen maravillosamente en este libro, el nivel de la lengua del texto es bien más allá de los grados primarios (1ras a 3ro) y era muy difícil para la mayoría de mis (4tos con 6tos) estudiantes intermedios también.

El libro demostró el desarrollo de Van Gogh. Afortunadamente para muchos de mis estudiantes de ESL (ingleses como segunda lengua), los subtítulos eran bastante breve para muchos de mis estudiantes con desarrollar habilidades inglesas. La discusión de "The Starry Night" era particularmente interesante puesto que la estancia descrita libro de Van Gogh en el hospital donde él estaba mientras que él pintó esta obra maestra y qué la pintura puede representar.

Recomiendo este libro como gran introducción a Vincent Van Gogh y su arte.

Review por: Maximillian Ben Hanan

Rating:
Summary: NICE OVERVIEW WRITTEN FOR KIDS
Review: I've always been intrigued by this artist's work but knew only sketchy details of his life. I soon found myself immersed in this book. Brilliantly written and formatted, it is also filled with examples of Van Gogh's work from youth until his tragic death at age thirty-seven. Included are the finer details of his life: his close bond to his brother Theo, his introduction to other masters such as Renoir, Pisarro, and Monet, and eccentric ways (he cut off the lobe of his ear and presented it to a friend at the local house of prostitution). His life was a sad irony--he was deeply religious yet mercurial and angry in his quest for acceptance--the quintessential mad genius. This book covers it all in easy to read text, superb illustrations, and the beautiful full-color examples of Van Gogh's work and a few of his contemporaries as well. This is geared toward older kids but adults will enjoy it too. Nicely done.

Rating:
Summary: SUPERB FOR YOUNG STUDENTS AND ADULTS ALIKE!
Review: My 12-year-old son brought this book home from his school library as a source for a report on Van Gogh. I've always been intrigued by this artist's work, but knew only sketchy details of his life. I soon found myself immersed in this book. Brilliantly written and formatted, it is also chock full of examples of Van Gogh's work from youth until his tragic death at age thirty-seven. Included are the finer details of his life: his close bond to his brother Theo, his introduction to other masters such as Renoir, Pisarro, and Monet, and eccentric ways (he cut off the lobe of his ear and presented it to a friend at the local house of prostitution). His life was a sad irony--he was deeply religious yet mercurial and angry in his quest for acceptance--the quintessential mad genius. This book covers it all in easy to read text, superb illustrations, and the beautiful full-color examples of Van Gogh's work and a few of his contemporaries as well. I highly recommend this book for children and adults alike; it is informative, yet never heavy-handed. It will make a wonderful addition to your library.