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I Am an Artist

Illustrated by Rose Blake
Published by David Zwirner Books
Distributed by Simon & Schuster

About The Book

“I spend every day thinking about the paintings and sculptures I will be creating, which fills my life with great joy. Art is an important means of identifying human existence and can send a wonderful message to the world. I believe that artists will create a new world and hope that everyone will share their own messages with the world.” —Yayoi Kusama, artist

“This book has not only entertained but has also encouraged my students to express themselves in new and powerful ways.” —Raleigh Young, Kindergarten Teacher at Polytechnic School, Pasadena, CA

“I wish I had this book when I was a youngster, to help me understand just how many ways you could approach being an artist, and all the tools you can use to make your work.” —Sharna Jackson, author of Black Artists Shaping the World

A follow-up book to the popular Making a Great Exhibition, I Am an Artist offers young readers exciting insights into the many ways artists work and the reasons why they make art.

Geared to children ages 4 to 8, but with appeal for all ages, this colorful and playful book asks: Who are artists? Why do they make art? What materials do they use? What tools do they work with? What forms do their artworks take?

Structured around a tour of an artists’ studio complex, the book introduces readers to street artists, ceramicists, conceptual artists, textile artists, photographers, glassblowers, and more! The artists share their working spaces and their techniques while explaining why they make art.

Rose and Doro’s first publication, Making a Great Exhibition, published in 2021, was acclaimed by The New York Times for “demystifying the art world and making it accessible to budding young artists,” and lauded by the renowned author and illustrator Oliver Jeffers, who wrote, “If this book helps shed light to just one kid that [art] is a viable career option, then it has done its job, as art is indescribably important!”

Now Rose and Doro have teamed up for a second time to bring their experiences with and love for the world of art to a young audience.

About The Author

Doro Globus is a writer, editor, and publisher specializing in creative culture, with a focus on arts publishing. Her first book, Making a Great Exhibition, is a fun inside look at the life of an artwork, from studio to exhibition. A passionate advocate for sharing creativity, Globus has dedicated her career to telling stories of artists and writers. She is Associate Publisher of David Zwirner Books and has worked in arts publishing for nearly twenty years. She has written about artists and art historians including Dawn Ades, Michael Bracewell, Fred Wilson, and Bridget Riley. 

About The Illustrator

Rose Blake is an illustrator and artist working in London. Her book A History of Pictures for Children: From Cave Paintings to Computer Drawings (2018), written by David Hockney and Martin Gayford, won the New Horizons award at the 2019 Bologna Children’s Book Fair. She has worked with a wide range of clients, including The New Yorker, The Boston Globe, The New York Times, BBC, Google, Soho House, The Telegraph, The Sunday Times, Transport for London, and Disney

Product Details

  • Publisher: David Zwirner Books (May 28, 2024)
  • Length: 40 pages
  • ISBN13: 9781644231470
  • Ages: 3 - 99

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