Draw What You See: The Life and Art of Benny Andrews

From blackwiki
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Draw What You See.jpg
Draw What You See2.jpg

Draw What You See: The Life and Art of Benny Andrews was written by Kathleen Benson and illustrated by Benny Andrews. This illustration book has 32 pages and it was published in 2015 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Kathleen Benson is the coauthor of many picture books, including John Lewis in the Lead, which was illustrated by Benny Andrews. She lives in Manhattan. Benny Andrews illustrated more than twenty books for children, including Poetry for Young People: Langston Hughes, for which he was awarded a Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor. [1]

Summary

Benny Andrews loved to draw. He drew his nine brothers and sisters, and his parents. He drew the red earth of the fields where they all worked, the hot sun that beat down, and the rows and rows of crops. As Benny hauled buckets of water, he made pictures in his head. And he dreamed of a better life—something beyond the segregation, the backbreaking labor, and the limited opportunities of his world. Benny’s dreams took him far from the rural Georgia of his childhood. He became one of the most important African American painters of the twentieth century, and he opened doors for other artists of color. His story will inspire budding young artists to work hard and follow their dreams. [1]

Pros

Some Good Reads' member dropped their comments about how beautiful this book was. A member named Jennifer Gallman who rated this book five stars explained that Benny Andrews was born in Plainview, Georgia in 1930, and while some of his greatest artwork came from the time he learned to draw at three years old to his early adulthood, he is perhaps most recently recognized from his time spent in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. For many children, Katrina meant leaving home and learning in a new school, but Andrews taught them how to express what they saw and felt, how to take the tragedy that Katrina brought and turn it into something beautiful. Kathleen Benson takes us back to where it all began in 30s Georgia where Benson first learned to draw what he saw around him, which consisted of African Americans working in the fields. While many associate field work with slavery, Andrews portrayed the labor of those who worked for a living, for money, not because someone was looming over them with whips. Peggy Tibbetts had the same thought as Jennifer, she said because of his unique ability to vividly portray African American culture and history, Benny’s paintings made him famous. As a respected artist and teacher he raised awareness of civil rights issues and social justice. Benny Andrews’ fifteen colorful and captivating paintings, including two dazzling two-page spreads, by themselves are worth the price of admission. His story is an inspiration to budding artists everywhere. “Draw What You See: The Life and Art of Benny Andrews” is an art treasure. [2]

Some compilation comments came from Library Thing's member who wrote their comments on the online site. They mentioned that Benny Andrews (1930 - 2006) was considered to be one of the best African American artists of the twentieth century. He also illustrated over twenty children’s books. The author of this picture book was able to incorporate his own work into her story of his life. Andrews also became active in protesting for equal representation in museums for artists of color. He later began to teach in order to share his love of art, and to encourage people to use visual expression to tell their stories.This is a wonderful example of a biography because it gives stories of Benny Andrew's life. Describing how he became a well-known artist, the book uses his own art as illustrations. At the very end of the book there is a year by year timeline of his life, which is very nicely laid out. We could see that he was born in Plainview, Georgia. We could also see that he has impacted the Civil Rights movement, as well as the lives of familes who lost their homes to hurrican Katrina. [3]

This inspiring story of the life of Benny Andrews is engagingly written by Kathleen Benson. It is clear she has done a lot of research. All the illustrations in the book are oil paintings by Benny Andrews. This completes the story in a fantastic way. Children will be able to see how Benny’s hard work paid off. The back matter includes a time line of Benny’s life, more information about him, a photo of him, and resources. This is a charming, educational, and inspirational portrait of the artist, the reviewed given by Rosi Hollinbeck. [4]

On their site, Publisher Weekly wrote that Artist Andrews’s own striking paintings illustrate the story of his life and work, eloquently told by Benson. With an often difficult childhood spent working in cotton fields. In New York City, his artwork increasingly reflected his social conscience: he painted Harlem residents, living at the advent of the civil rights movement. His images blend whimsical elements tree leaves resemble globular mosaic glasswork in one scene with stark depictions of struggle, emphasizing his efforts to find intersections between creativity and social justice. [5]

Andrews chronicled people from his Georgia past, the lively New York street and arts life, and the civil rights movement, and he also pushed for inclusiveness in gallery shows and involved himself deeply in art education in schools and prisons. The text effectively traces the trajectory of Andrews’ life, but it’s fairly vague about the details of his achievements, and the sometimes choppy prose lacks the storytelling flair that would bring immediacy to the account. This could be a useful addition to an art unit, or it would make an interesting pairing with Andrews-illustrated books to talk about the connection between fine art and illustration. [6]

References