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Getting to Know the World's Greatest Artists
Salvador Dalí
Briefly describes the life and work of the twentieth-century Spanish surrealist painter, describing and giving examples of his art
32 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 1993
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
December 25, 2024
Interesting information and lots of pictures of his painting.
June 8, 2021
Biography Non-Fiction (with a healthy dose of art history)
4-6
This author has written more than a dozen of these books about artists. It is an easy read, flows well and has a good selection of full-color photographs of works of art by Dali and the artists that influenced him. The illustrations drawn for this book by the author are in a cartoon style, keeping them distinct from any of the included artwork. Using the cartoon format, complete with speech bubbles, also allows the author to infuse some humor and personality into the biographical narrative.
Text set: artists; emotional awareness; art history
4-6
This author has written more than a dozen of these books about artists. It is an easy read, flows well and has a good selection of full-color photographs of works of art by Dali and the artists that influenced him. The illustrations drawn for this book by the author are in a cartoon style, keeping them distinct from any of the included artwork. Using the cartoon format, complete with speech bubbles, also allows the author to infuse some humor and personality into the biographical narrative.
Text set: artists; emotional awareness; art history
August 23, 2017
Mike Venezia's art biographies are great and this one is no exception though I am sorry to say that I still don't understand or like Dali's work at all. I wish Mike Venezia would include back pages summarizing the artist's life in a timeline format. One of the great advantages in Venezia's art series is that they include actual reproductions of the artist's work so the reader can see what they did. In this case, librarians should note that there are naked people in Dali's work though they are generally small and in the distance.
April 15, 2019
Great introductory look at the artist Salvador Dali. My third grade students were fascinated by the paintings and it was fun to listen to them discuss what they each could see in the paintings.
December 13, 2020
Enjoyed this picture book biography. The cartoons added to our fun while tackling a complicated life. The art photos were all carefully labeled which I appreciated.
August 23, 2024
Great book on Salvador Dali, easy read for students
January 7, 2025
big fan of this little freak actually
December 28, 2014
Previously read: currently playing catch-up.
I was a weird kid. And in terms of artistic influences, I've always been drawn to those persons who operated outside the conventions.
Hence why Picasso was one of my favorites from a young age, and why Dali soon after followed him as a big inspiration to young Jon's warped mind.
I don't remember as much of the Dali biography as I do the PIcasso biography, in part--I think--because Picasso's art had a child-like quality to it that made it more accessible to me back then. The one thing I remember from the Dali biography was a cartoon Venezia drew of child Dali freaking out. That still makes me laugh.
But the majority of Dali's work--when I first read this book--just felt bizarre and spooky. Intriguing, make no mistake, but there felt something markedly ADULT about Dali was attempting with his artwork. Now, as an adult myself, I absolutely love his bizarre art, and even more so his bizarre personality.
But how does one address this sense of "adultness" in a book geared towards kids? That was the question that kept popping up in my mind as I reread Salvador Dali a few weeks ago. See, for many of these biographies, it seemed simple enough for Mike Venezia to just "tell their story": recount their life and important contributions to the world of art, being careful to distinguish them from their contemporaries.
But then there are the weirdos. It's incredibly easy to separate Picasso from Dali. But it seems to me that in discussing their stories, the task now becomes one centered on accessibility. How do you present these works to children without scaring them off?
The cartoons certainly help in this regard. Venzenia's illustration bring out the cartoonish nature of some of Dali's paintings, bridging the gap. But I think the real success of these books lies in their formatting. I would have to do an extensive study on children's Dali biographies to know for sure, but Venzenia's method of placing life events alongside examples of Dali's art--linking the two in a loose cause-effect relationship--connects the artist to his art. Often, it feels as if these "classic" paintings exist independently of their creators. That Dali, as an artist, was important, but that his paintings are important in separate but equal ways.
But by connecting the artist back to the art, essentially saying, "This is why Dali painted this," or "This part of Dali's personality led to the creation of this" makes both the art and the artist seem more human: a seemingly impossible task when discussing Dali. I love Dali because he was an oddball and proud of it, but he had feelings and thoughts as an human being does, and by connecting the art to the thoughts and feelings that produce it, it seems to me that kids can see Dali and other "out there" artists creatives in the same realm as Da Vinci or Degas: all producing art in their own way, and no one way more right or wrong than its partner.
I was a weird kid. And in terms of artistic influences, I've always been drawn to those persons who operated outside the conventions.
Hence why Picasso was one of my favorites from a young age, and why Dali soon after followed him as a big inspiration to young Jon's warped mind.
I don't remember as much of the Dali biography as I do the PIcasso biography, in part--I think--because Picasso's art had a child-like quality to it that made it more accessible to me back then. The one thing I remember from the Dali biography was a cartoon Venezia drew of child Dali freaking out. That still makes me laugh.
But the majority of Dali's work--when I first read this book--just felt bizarre and spooky. Intriguing, make no mistake, but there felt something markedly ADULT about Dali was attempting with his artwork. Now, as an adult myself, I absolutely love his bizarre art, and even more so his bizarre personality.
But how does one address this sense of "adultness" in a book geared towards kids? That was the question that kept popping up in my mind as I reread Salvador Dali a few weeks ago. See, for many of these biographies, it seemed simple enough for Mike Venezia to just "tell their story": recount their life and important contributions to the world of art, being careful to distinguish them from their contemporaries.
But then there are the weirdos. It's incredibly easy to separate Picasso from Dali. But it seems to me that in discussing their stories, the task now becomes one centered on accessibility. How do you present these works to children without scaring them off?
The cartoons certainly help in this regard. Venzenia's illustration bring out the cartoonish nature of some of Dali's paintings, bridging the gap. But I think the real success of these books lies in their formatting. I would have to do an extensive study on children's Dali biographies to know for sure, but Venzenia's method of placing life events alongside examples of Dali's art--linking the two in a loose cause-effect relationship--connects the artist to his art. Often, it feels as if these "classic" paintings exist independently of their creators. That Dali, as an artist, was important, but that his paintings are important in separate but equal ways.
But by connecting the artist back to the art, essentially saying, "This is why Dali painted this," or "This part of Dali's personality led to the creation of this" makes both the art and the artist seem more human: a seemingly impossible task when discussing Dali. I love Dali because he was an oddball and proud of it, but he had feelings and thoughts as an human being does, and by connecting the art to the thoughts and feelings that produce it, it seems to me that kids can see Dali and other "out there" artists creatives in the same realm as Da Vinci or Degas: all producing art in their own way, and no one way more right or wrong than its partner.
July 10, 2009
After visiting Barcelona and seeing some Dali paintings in the Vatican Museum, I wanted to know more about this eccentric artist. I thoroughly enjoyed the research but the book itself was average.
August 16, 2013
Great non fiction book to introduce students and adults to Salvador Dali. Cartoons mixed in with authentic art work make this an appealing read for all and will hook young readers.
March 14, 2014
Very quick read, nothing you can't find on the internet but still a nice, quick read.
October 22, 2014
Geez Salvador Dali was a weird dude. ;) As always Mike Venezia has done an amazing job of combining facts and humor in an interesting biography.
September 12, 2010
good book for elementary school age children, story about the artist's life, lots of pictures
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews