Art for Christmas - How to Buy Art for Children

Art is a gift that continues to give long after the holidays end. Instilling the love of art in children is a gift that lasts a lifetime. A gift of original art is a personal value you can share with the child, and help them develop their own love and appreciation for art. Art education and art appreciation is the perfect holiday gift for a special child in your life!

5 Tips for Giving Art to Children

1. Children love color

Whether the child you're buying for loves bright, bold, audacious colors or prefers muted pastels, children are inspired by color in their environment. What are the child's favorite colors? What colors don't they like? Ask questions to help determine the color choice when buying art for children.

2. Choose a subject they enjoy

Jewels of the Sea by Shirley Monestier

Giving a child an original art work of a subject they are interested in opens the child's eyes to how art can be part of their everyday life, not just an activity for play or school. If the child is interested in sports, many sports-themed artworks art available as prints or original art pieces. A child who loves music may appreciate art featuring their favorite instrument or musician. A nature-lover may appreciate art showcasing animals, or a beach scene.

3. Personalize it

Can the artist inscribe the painting with your child's name? Can a sports figure in the piece wear the child's team number? For young children especially, personalizing the art with something unique to the child makes them excited about the artwork and helps them relate to the piece.

4. Discuss it

When you give a child a piece of art, explain to them why you bought if for them: what features of the art piece made you think of the child? Ask the child to discuss the art with you, what do they like about the piece, do they like the colors, how does the art make them feel? Tell the child what kind of art you like - and what kinds you don't like - to help the child understand that its OK to like some pieces more than others, and to understand better why they do or don't like specific art pieces.

5. Share the artist's story

artist Shirley Monestier in her studio in Bordeaux, France

When possible meet the artist in person to understand their story, or do some research to find out about the artist. Understanding who made the piece, what their story is, helps kids understand and get excited about the artist's creativity process and inspirations.

Children love art, and are inspired by color and creativity. This year, give a special child in your life an original gift of art, and start them on a lifelong passion. 

I invite you to visit my online art gallery for original art gifts this holiday season:

www.shirleymonestier.com

a la prochaine,

Shirley

Wishing all my family and friends,
where ever you may be,
a safe and happy Thanksgiving.

a la prochaine,

Shirley

The Art of Jazz

Jazz is a true American art. The relationship between jazz and art is heavily intertwined. Jazz music is a highly visual art form and was promoted through bold, vibrant and colorful posters, album covers and promotions.

Jazz can be enjoyed and appreciated through live performances and recordings. Jazz lovers visit intimate music venues recalling the early days of smokey jazz lounges, large jazz festivals and cruises, and museums dedicated to the history of jazz musicians and music. We have had the opportunity to enjoy jazz around the world - especially New York City and Paris.

In addition to well-known venues such as Birdland and the Harlem Jazz Museum in NYC or Preservation Hall in New Orleans, there are small museums across the United States dedicated to promoting and preserving The Art of Jazz:

1.  The Museum of Jazz and Art - MOJA - in Oakland, California, is dedicated to raising the awareness, importance and preservation of jazz and art to American culture.

artists rendering: The Museum of Jazz and Art

Connect with MOJA online:

• Website: www.moja-us.org
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Moja.us
• Twitter: @MoJazzArt

2.  Loves's Jazz & Art Center - located in Omaha, Nebraska was established to preserve, promote and present African American Art and Jazz. Honoring local legendary Jazz musician Preston Love Sr, the museum is 

LJAC:

• Website: http://lovesjazzartcenter.org/
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/pages/Loves-Jazz-Art-Center

3.  American Jazz Museum - in Kansas City, MO, is the "only museum in the world solely focused on the preservation, exhibition and advancement of jazz music."

Visit the American Jazz Museum online:

• Website: www.americanjazzmuseum.org 
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/americanjazzmuseum
• YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/americanjazzmuseum

I'll be sharing more jazz and art stories soon... stay tuned!

a la prochaine,

Shirley

Virtual Museum Tours - Field Trips Online

Have you ever read about a museum you would love to visit, but circumstances - time - money - travel - make it impossible to visit the museum in person? Often I read of a wonderful exhibit in Savannah, or a new museum in Paris, an architectural wonder in South America, and wish I could drop everything and visit.


Today museums, world heritage sites, historical artifacts and monuments can all be explored via the digital world.

Here are some of my favorite online resources for virtual field trips:

• Google Cultural Institute and World Wonders - Over 500 Google partners from 60+ countries have uploaded over 6.2 million objects and artifacts to the Google Cultural Institute website. In one year from June 2013 - June 2014 over 19 million unique visitors have viewed over 200 million web pages. FREE

• MoMA, New York City - The Museum of Modern Art App for iPhone lets you see and hear a wide variety of exhibits and artists, find out about upcoming events, and organize and share your favorite museum artworks. FREE 

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• Musée Du Louvre, Paris - Discover the Louvre Museum with this iPhone app that presents over 1000 pieces from the museum's collection, presents a history of the castle that houses the museum, and has a video tour of the Louvre. FREE

• National Gallery, London - The National Gallery iPhone app has over 250 artworks with video and audio stories about the collection. Famous artists, writers and experts discuss the artworks and introduce the stories behind the masterpieces. $2.99

• Smithsonian Museums, Washington DC - Each Smithsonian Museum offers different virtual websites and apps for online tours, exhibits and background. The Museum of Natural History offers a panoramic room-by-room tour of the museum. FREE

What are your favorite virtual museum and cultural tours? Leave me a comment, I'd like to visit!

a la prochaine,

Shirley

The Brooklyn Museum - Killer Heels: The Art of the High-Heeled Shoe

Last week on ArtDaily I discovered a new exhibit at The Brooklyn Museum - Killer Heels: The Art of the High-Heeled Shoe. The exhibit features over 160 shoes ranging from contemporary high heels to 16th Century heels, displayed alongside decorative arts and images of high heels in art, movies and films commissioned for this exhibit.

These shoes are an ART FORM: handcrafted, painted, sculptured works of art! Styles from platforms to stilettos to thigh-high laced boots demonstrate the history and our fascination with this provocative fashion accessory.

Shoes on exhibit include designs by:

• Manolo Blahnic
• Christian Louboutin
• Chanel
• Salvatore Ferragamo
• Alexander McQueen
• Andre Perugia
• Elsa Schiaparelli
• Vivienne Westwood

Prada

Glass Slippers by Nicola Ghesquiere for Balenciaga 

Skyscraper Inspired Heels

Chinese Manchu Platforms 

Platform Stilettos 

Animal Prints

Fantasy Booties

screenshot from the Killer Heels e-book

still from Marie Antoinette movie by Sophia Coppola

still from commissioned short film 

Killer Heels is a journey through the history of high heels that will keep you awing and marveling at the artistic creativity and imagination of shoe designers.

For more shoe images from the Killer Heels exhibit visit here.

The exhibit runs through February 15, 2015, at The Brooklyn Museum, Robert E. Blum Gallery.

a la prochaine,

Shirley

A Visit to Whitney Museum of American Art and the Jeff Koons Exhibit

Jeff Koons is one of the most popular artists alive today; his latest exhibit Jeff Koons: A Retrospective is at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City until October 19. Koons is an American artist born in 1955, who is know for his bright, colorful and whimsical paintings, sculptures and reproductions of everyday objects. In 2013 his "Orange Dog" sold for $58.4 million - the highest sale price for any living artist.


Jeff Koons is widely regarded as one of the most important, influential, popular, and controversial artists of the postwar era. 

~ Whitney Museum of American Art 

With 150 objects in the exhibit dating back to 1978, the exhibit is on 4 floors of the museum and in the courtyard. The entire city of New York appears to be paying homage to Koons:

• Split-Rocker is a giant living plant sculpture on display at Rockefeller Center
• a limited-edition gold Dog Balloon purse is on sale at HandM  and Koons is curating an exhibit at the 5th Ave store 
• a 6-story billboard of the Dog Balloon proclaims Fashion Rocks from the side of the building

To respond to the huge crowds and public enthusiasm for the exhibit, the Whitney expanded its hours to include Mondays on September 1.

Cat on a Clothesline by Jeff Koons

Purple Heart by Jeff Koons

Michael Jackson and Bubbles by Jeff Koons

Play-Doh by Jeff Koons

Moustache Lobster by Jeff Koons

A friend in NYC attended the exhibit in early September, and the lines were out the door and around the corner. While waiting, she overheard several families with young children discussing the sexually graphic nature of some of the art, and that they would not be visiting several rooms of the exhibit. When my friend visited those rooms, she did note that there were many children with their parents visiting that part of the exhibit.

The exhibit is open:

• Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, 

          Saturday, Sunday                                     11am - 6pm

• Friday                                                         11am - 9pm

Visitor rates are:

• General Admission                                    $20
• Ages 19-25, over 65 and FT Students:      $16
• Members and 18 and under                       FREE
• Fridays from 6-9pm                                    Pay As You Wish

Jeff Koons: A Retrospective will be on display at the Centre Pompidou, Musée national d’art moderne, Paris, from November 26, 2014–April 27, 2015; and the Guggenheim Bilbao, Spain, June 5–September 27, 2015.

a la prochaine,

Shirley

Street Art and Graffiti: Foreshadowed by Paris Advertising Art of Toulouse-Lautrec

A new exhibit at NYC's MoMA (Museum of Modern Art) showcases "The Paris of Toulouse-Lautrec: Prints and Posters." Henri Toulouse-Lautrec is remembered for his posters advertising the night life of dance halls, theaters and cafes in Paris' Montmarte district.

In the late 1800's Montmartre's bohemian and decadent night life attracted tourists and locals to a lifestyle flaunting alcohol, prostitutes and frequently drugs. As a handicapped artist needing to make a living, Toulouse-Lautrec was hired to make posters promoting the Montmartre lifestyle. His 'art' was scorned by many other artists, but his confidence from an aristocratic background and deteriorating health from alcoholism and birth defects left him few options to earn a living.

Ironically, today Henri Toulouse-Lautrec is renown for his advertisements depicting the people, places and moral decay of Montmartre.

Once considered a crime, graffiti art was quickly cleaned or painted over, and removed from buildings, buses, billboards and trains. Today street art is becoming increasingly popular and collectible. Urban artists such as Banksy and Zephyr are hailed as artists, rather than criminals, and their street art is preserved and showcased.

Reminiscent of Toulouse-Lautrec, street artists are being hired for graffiti advertising campaigns by companies including Miller beer, IBM and Domino's Pizza to target young, hip consumers.

I love the vibrant, energetic colors and shapes these artists bring to our world: while I never want private property defaced or destroyed, I welcome the art being easily available to the public. Take a look below at some street art from urban artists around the world, and see my Pinterest board for more examples of urban art.

à la prochaine,  

Shirley

              British urban artist Banksy 

                Mexican urban artist Neuzz

graffiti art on the High Line in NYC