Smart About…Henri Matisse: Drawing with Scissors

Smart About… series

Ages 6-10; grades 1-5

Keesia and Henri Matisse have the same birthday—New Year’s Eve! That’s why she picks him for her artist report. She finds out that over his long career Matisse made paintings, sculpture, books, costumes, and her favorite—his cut-outs, or what Matisse called “drawing with scissors.” The report is filled with about 20 of Matisse’s masterpieces as well as artwork that Keesia has created in his “style” (cut-out leaves, drawings through windows, fauvist animals). As she follows Matisse through his life she discovers why he is considered one of the greatest artists of the twentieth century.