How Dreadful!
-
- 10,99 €
-
- 10,99 €
Beschreibung des Verlags
What exactly is a piece of art? What is it meant to capture? And how do we find the courage to believe in our work?
It’s the week of her gallery opening and none of Paty’s paintings are ready. She asks her friends to pose in her studio, and the outcome is... just dreadful. After seeing the way Paty has portrayed them, one after the other, they leave in a huff. Paty wonders whether she should cancel the whole thing. Fortunately, Michou, the gallery owner, forbids it. And Paty is in for a surprise on opening day...
What exactly is a piece of art? What is it meant to capture? How do we find the courage to believe in our work? Claire Lebourg’s watercolor illustrations convey all the worry and self-doubt that comes with any creative practice and show us that maybe the secret lies in believing in yourself.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This ardent tale about the artist's life starts just days before the opening of an exhibition. Artist Paty, who has silvery wings, huge eyes, and a long proboscis, works in a high-ceilinged studio in what appears to be a Paris garret. Despite the deadline, she has yet to prepare, and the pressure is on. Friend Isabelle, a poufy purple spider, happily agrees to pose for a watercolor portrait but is underwhelmed with the result: "Humph," Lewis translates in conversational text. Pierre the caterpillar doesn't like the paper collage Paty painstakingly makes of him ("If I knew you saw me as some hairy old garden hose..."), and Mona the shrimp doesn't mince words: "THIS was what I had in mind!" she says, holding up a copy of the Mona Lisa. Author-illustrator Lebourg sets up expectations for the show, then confounds them when a pleasant surprise awaits Paty there. In pen and ink–style art highlighted by soft washes, the heavy-lidded googly eyes of Paty and her passionate friends garner reader smiles in this tale about the personal and sometimes downright irrational feelings evoked by works of art. Ages 3–8.
