Sonia Delaunay - by Cara Manes & Fatinha Ramos (Hardcover)

About the Book

Sonia Delaunay, painter and textile, theater, and fashion designer, made enormous contributions to the development of abstraction in the early 1910s, partly because of her son, Charles. In this new book, Delaunay and six-year-old Charles have a fantastical adventure in a world of color and form, a magical road trip in their car, modeled after her 1925 design for a Citroen convertible. They glide into a landscape of colors and shapes drawn from Delaunay's early abstract compositions it's as if they've driven into one of her paintings. Mother and son also explore the artist's gorgeous, colorful designs for fabrics and clothing. Throughout, Delaunay helps Charles understand her artistic process and that of her husband, artist Robert Delaunay, by asking him what shapes and colors he recognizes along the way. They end up back in the real world, and Charles realizes that his mother's thoughts about art permeate every aspect of their life.

Book Synopsis

Author Cara Manes and illustrator Fatinha Ramos explore the life of Sonia Delaunay (1885-1979), painter and textile, theater, and fashion designer, who made enormous contributions to the development of abstraction in the early 1910s, in this picture book.

In Sonia Delaunay: A Life of Color, Delaunay and her six-year-old son Charles have a fantastical adventure in their car, modeled after her 1925 design for a Citroën convertible. They glide into a landscape of colors and shapes, as if they've driven into one of her paintings. Delaunay helps Charles understand her artistic process by asking him what shapes and colors he recognizes along the way, and Charles realizes that his mother's thoughts about art permeate every aspect of their life.

"Ramos's artwork echoes the shapes of colors of Delaunay's art brilliantly . . . A visual treat and a fine addition to round out any collection of art and monograph books for young children." --School Library Journal

Review Quotes

"Ramos's artwork echoes the shapes of colors of Delaunay's art brilliantly . . . A visual treat and a fine addition to round out any collection of art and monograph books for young children."-- "School Library Journal"

About the Author

Cara Manes is Assistant Curator in the Department of Painting and Sculpture at The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Fatinha Ramos is an award-winning illustrator and artist who lives in Antwerp, Belgium.