Know a child who loves art? Inspire his or her imagination with these fantastic children’s art books! All of these are 100% kid-tested, straight from our home library to yours!
Jackson Pollock Splashed Paint and Wasn’t Sorry.
Enjoyed most by: 4-6 yrs. old
This playful book is the perfect way to introduce young children to Jackson Pollock and his creative painting style. Eye-catching black and white illustrations explore how Pollock could have created all of those unique splatter compositions. Get ready for lots of giggles when reading this children’s art book!
I SPY: An Alphabet in Art
Enjoyed most by: 3-6 yrs. old
Review the alphabet and introduce great works of art from throughout history with your little one! Have fun playing “I Spy” while exploring 26 color images of some of the art world’s most famous paintings.
Art Workshop for Children
Enjoyed most by: 3 yrs. old and up
This book is absolute perfection for when you need some quick inspiration without having to scroll through Pinterest all day! Not to mention, you will absolutely enjoy snuggling up on the couch with your tiny love to look through this beautiful book together. Bright and colorful illustrations make it easy for kids to pick out which activity they would like to try.
Henri’s Scissors
Most enjoyed by: 4-7 yrs. old
This book explains how and why Henri Matisse began creating some of his most well-known work: the large-scale, colorful paper cut-outs of his later years. Gorgeous and imaginative illustrations bring Matisse’s masterful work to life. An excellent book to get young kids excited about using scissors to create their own masterpieces.
Let’s Make Some Great Art
Most enjoyed by: 6 yrs. old and up
This book is filled with TONS of art activities and creative prompts to unleash your imagination. It also introduces some of The GREATS (i.e. Leonardo Da Vinci, Pablo Picasso, Jackson Pollock, etc.) and their different mark-making techniques. Best of all? The information is broken down into simple, engaging, and easy to follow steps. Think of Let’s Make Some Great Art as a fantastic sketchbook because the author encourages you to draw, stamp, paint, and doodle directly on its pages.
Never Let a Dinosaur Scribble!
Most enjoyed by: 3-6 yrs. old
What happens if you give a dinosaur a crayon? What could possibly go wrong? In this delightful children’s art book, one artistic idea quickly leads to another and another (similar set up to the classic, If You Give A Mouse A Cookie).
Splash of Color: Painting & Coloring Book
Most enjoyed by: 4 yrs. old and up
This is the most gorgeous coloring book that I have yet to come across! Its pages are filled with whimsical black ink drawings, perfect for encouraging creative thinking in both young children and adults. Want to see more? Check out my blog post, Splash of Color: A Painting and Coloring Book the Whole Family Will Love.
The Big Orange Splot
Most enjoyed by: 3-7 yrs. old
One of my son’s favorites! A fantastic and fun read about finding creative inspiration and not being afraid to follow your own path.
Dr. Seuss’s Horse Museum
Most enjoyed by: 3-7 yrs. old
This book is a treasure! It is perfect gift for young children who are interested in both art and horses. It explores how the horse has been represented in art throughout history and in different parts of the world. The best part? It includes color reproductions of TONS of real-life paintings and sculptures!
Press Here
Most enjoyed by: 2-5 yrs. old
I like to think of this book as a work of interactive art! Each page has its own unique prompt (such as, “Press here and turn the page” or “Perfect, Try shaking the book…just a little bit”) inviting children to explore the idea of cause and effect. Young children will delight in following the instructions and seeing what happens to this single yellow dot!
I hope you enjoy these children’s art books as much as we do!
Happy reading and creating!
Lauren Heller Art Consultant is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
What a great post!!
Thank you!! I love getting to recommend and share a few of our favorite books with others!
Lolly I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this post. It’so important to give children the freedom of expression in art that parents tend to unintentionally squash out of them when they’re little. Marc would have loved this too.
Thank you and I totally agree! I love the Picasso quote: “It took me four years to paint like Raphael, but a lifetime to paint like a child.” Art is so important for self-expression, imagination, fine motor development, and much more!