Paint and Pen

I saw a poster at school a few days ago which read, “We expect children to colour within the lines and grown ups to think out-of-the-box.”

Art for children may be just about colouring pictures but it is an activity that gives them the freedom and the space to express themselves. Introducing children to artists and art forms is not just a way of broadening their horizons but will give their thoughts and feelings a creative outlet. Here are a few books, as well as series, that show children the power of art in a manner they understand.

Artventures of Gond: Elementary | Rooftop Books | 60 pages | ₹999

 Artventures Series

We have all looked at a painting and wondered how it would look if we had painted it. Now you can try it! The Artventure series of books highlights the story and motifs of one art form per book. There are books on Warli, Phad, Gond, Mata ne Pachedi, Cheriyal, Pichwai, and Bhil.

Written for children, each book shows a young child approaching an artist and asking questions. Through conversations, the child learns the story behind the art form, where it is from, and how the art form developed over the years. There are pages introducing the reader to the design on the borders, important motifs, and the main colour scheme. Compiled as a workbook, readers can draw and colour in the book while copying the reference image. In Artventures of Gond, a young girl, Golu finds her grandmother decorating her neighbour’s walls with paintings. She asks her about it and learns that Gond art is used to decorate houses during weddings and celebrations. Animals like deer and fish are common motifs and designs are made with recurring patterns. Colours are often bright and bold and made by powdering and mixing herbs and fruit.

Easy to read and written as a story, these books are designed to introduce young readers to common Indian folk-art forms. The exercises are fun and will have young readers eager to try them out. The best part about the structure of the book is how the writers have broken down a centuries-old art form into its basic building blocks allowing enthusiastic artists to try their hand at ancient folk art. Interesting for children and adults and a great way to bond over art!

 Art Is a Voice | Kripa | Ektara Trust | 32 pages | ₹750

Art Is a Voice by Kripa is a coming together of different voices to introduce readers to activism through art and the immense potential to unite people as a community.

From the first page which reads, “They tell me, paint flowers. I paint what I see. Protests blooming”, the readers understand that this is a book that will urge them to think beyond what they see. Every page begins with a verse and a pullout or flip-open element, which shows an art form and a few lines from an artist speaking about an issue. The book showcases how artists depict Protest, Discontentment, Displacement, Deforestation, Gender, Intolerance and other issues. Each one of these pages is profound and open-ended.

Kripa brings together art and quotes from contemporary Indian artists and we are treated to different media and ways in which these artists have voiced their protest. The illustrations that accompany each page are pictures of detailed collages made from clippings of protest signs, textured and patterned paper, and symbolic images from various events in the past few years. Book designer and co-author Rohina Thapar deftly intersperses the verses, collages, and art to create a book that will leave the reader spellbound.

Art Is a Voice will be at home on your coffee table or amidst your picture books. This is a book you will find yourself turning to time and again when you want to have important conversations with children or when you want to immerse yourself in the power of art. In its own gentle way, it forces you to look at things around you a little differently, to dig deeper, to form your own opinions, and to express what you feel.

Ganesh Pyne’s Twilight Dreams | Vaishali Shroff,  illustrated by Priya Kuriyan | ART1ST | 36 pages | ₹450

How do you introduce children to the rich and diverse art history of India? Most children would have heard of Picasso and Van Gogh, but draw a blank when asked about Indian artists. The Art Exploration Series of books from Art1st are designed to introduce children to Indian artists through stories and interactive books in a picture book biography format.

Ganesh Pyne’s Twilight Dreams looks at the artist’s childhood and traces the history of his interest in art. It goes back to when Ganesh Pyne, as a four-year-old boy would listen to his grandmother’s stories and imagine the characters against the shadow play of his family home. From the moment he could draw, he would try to recreate the images in his head on the house walls, only to be reprimanded by his family. Events like the Calcutta riots in the days leading to the Partition and the loss of his father and grandmother (his only source of support) led him to express his deep sense of loss, longing, and sadness through disturbing and dark images.

Constructed primarily with deep blue, yellow, and black, the book immerses the reader in the story. It draws you from the very first page itself as we see Pyne’s grandmother dramatically narrating a story to a group of young children. Characters that Pyne sees peek from floor tiles and shadows. Every page has an interactive element—from the popup with images in Pyne’s head to a little notebook with his drawings. The transition from happier days in his childhood told in yellow to darker days set against a backdrop of blue and black to finally freeing his mind with art when all three colours come together, is fascinating and encourages children to think beyond what they see on the pages. Vaishali Shroff who has also written Breaking Moulds on sculptor Meera Mukherjee, keeps the text interesting and highlights the unique bond between Pyne and his grandmother. Illustrator Priya Kuriyan fills the pages with images taking the reader on a journey through Pyne’s mind. Book designer Rohina Thapar uses tactile interaction to enhance the reader’s interest and keeps them hooked to the story.

The Art Exploration series also has a few pages dedicated to explaining the artist’s work and technique to children and encouraging them to think like the artist. This is followed by simple how-to-exercises to mimic the work of Pyne.

Line Meets Line | Rea Malhotra Mukhtyar and Aditya Angelo Fernandes | Lettori Press | 56 pages | ₹349

Ever wondered what could happen if, and when, two lines meet? Not just in a graph computational way, but in the real world. Two lines coming together could be delicious when they become chopsticks. Two lines meeting could tell time by being hands on a clock.

Line Meets Line starts with two lines meeting and saying Hello. This is visually represented by two letter Ls shaking hands in the middle of a deep red page with the word Hello written in black. The tone of the book is set from the first page itself. From Hello, we go on to see where else two lines can meet, and what else they can do, and each one is quirkier than the last. They are mathematical symbols, they are cake slices and noses on stick figures. But there is a twist in the tale. What happens when a line meets someone who isn’t like it? When a straight line meets a squiggly line? Turns out it is confusing at first, but then once you open your mind to change, the possibilities are endless!

Line Meets Line is a picture book that urges you to think outside the box. Its quirky illustrations encourage young readers to explore beyond the ordinary and question what something as basic as two lines can represent. It helps them visually learn about geometry and composition and opens their eyes to endless possibilities.

The narrative is written in rhyme and is perfect for a read-aloud. With deep rich colours, exaggerated images, and bold typesetting, Line Meets Line is a visual feast.

About The Author

Rati Girish

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