A Splash of Red: The Life and Art of Horace Pippin

A Splash of Red: The Life and Art of Horace Pippin written by Jen Bryant and illustrated by Melissa Sweet is a biography of AFrican American artist, Horace Pippin.  As I began this well illustrated biography, I was delighted to find out that Horace Pippin was born just down the road from where I currently live and work in West Chester, Pennsylvania.  Although his childhood wasn’t easy, Horace was always drawing using scraps of paper and charcoal, a paint set he won in an art contest, broken pencils he found, and a notebook in the trenches during World War I.  Horace was injured in his shoulder during the war and for many years, thought he would be unable to draw again, but by using his left hand to guide his right hand, Horace began drawing again.

This was a very well researched and written biography for young children.  It would work exceptionally well as a resource in art classrooms for elementary school children.  The author and artist worked together researching Pippin’s life and art and you can clearly see the integration between the text and illustrations, with a combination of Pippin’s own quotations intermixed with art inspired by his own and text that fits around the illustrations to create a seamless spread.

To find out more, check out the website for this book!

Title: A Splash of Red: The Life and Art of Horace Pippin
Author: Jen Bryant
Illustrator: Melissa Sweet
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf
Publication Date: 2013