How do you study famous artists for kids? Use this free artist biography printable book to introduce your student to art history!

This free printable “fill it in” style biography book is the perfect introduction to studying famous artists for kids. The book prints in economical black and white with spaces to add your own color and is appropriate for any artist your child is studying! This book is an easy intro to art history for kids!

Why write an artist biography….

As a kid it seemed that every famous artist I ever learned about was a dead guy. It was- true fact. I don’t remember learning about any women artists or modern artists till college. Art history was boring, super boring- even to a kid like me with a genuine interest in the arts.

Today information about anything we want to learn about is at our fingertips. Wanna’ study an art history for kids? Most of us can call that information up on our phones in a matter of minutes. Images, facts, videos are all at our disposal. Learning new things is SO easy these days! And it doesn’t have to be boring!

Choose a famous artist to study…

Letting your kiddo choose an artist that interests them will make all the difference. Think outside the box when choosing a famous artist for your kiddo to learn more about. Just because the title says “artist” biography doesn’t mean it has to be one of the dead, white guys we think of as important. Consider architects, fashion designers, textile artists, illustrators, and other non-traditional art careers.

Basic art history for kids…

Many of my artist study printables focus on kids looking at a body of work by a given artist and responding to it, no outside information needed. (Check out artist studies on Rousseau, Van Gogh, and Cassatt here. Responding to and describing an artwork is a super valid skill for a kid to develop. Learning to talk about art can be intimidating.

This little art history book for kids takes a different approach than the artist studies above. Not only will kids be responding to the work of a particular artist but they will need facts. In my experience information I’ve sought out sticks in my brain way more than information fed to me. So head to the library or open a kid friendly browser and set them free.

There are some really great resources available for teaching art history for kids. Check out this book list of series of books about famous artists for kids. These books are fun and funny and full of information without being overwhelming. Lots of books on this list are so enjoyable they are even good for pleasure reading.

Just the basics….

Basic facts about your student’s famous artists like name, place of birth, and typical medium are asked for. Other pages can be interpreted a little more loosely. There’s no right or wrong answer to questions like “most famous artwork” or “why are they special.” There is no right or wrong answer so encourage your kiddo to give these some thought and an honest answer.

Famous artists for kids finishing touches…

What do you need to make this artist biography book? This art history for kids book prints in black and white so it’s super economical. There are lots of places for your kiddo to write and draw using colored pencil, crayon, or whatever medium they choose. If you have printing capabilities it can be fun to have your child search for online images to print of their artist’s work or even pics of the artist themselves. If no printer is available, no worries!

The good news is this famous artists for kids book can be finished virtually mess free. It’s a perfect art lesson for those days that time just doesn’t allow for a big allotted clean up period!

If you’re ready to explore famous artists for kids with this printable book subscribe below to grab the PDF in my Free Resource Library.

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