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STERPIECES
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Written by JENN BAILEY
Illustrated by NYANGSONGI
N E W YO R K
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ome walk along with Mama Cat and tour the works of art. Inside each frame you’re sure to find your own creative heart.
ama Cat is far from pleased: her Kits ignore their dishes.
tangled strings and mousEy-hunting wishes. Their supper’s filled with
nd so she feels the time is right to boost their kitten smarts. “Gather round, you cheeky Kits– come learn the
feline Arts.”
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This is an advance, uncorrected proof. fair wind’s blown on cats like us or Not for resale, duplication, reposting. do not quote without throughoutPlease our history. comparison to the finished book. All humankind finds us divine:
we’ve got
GRACE and mystery. hrough life you’ll face the likelihood of causing a sensation.
Take center stage, enjoy the praise: you’ve earned the
adoration! ”
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e’re known for
curiosity
and going where we shouldn’t. Exploring places near and far . . . Of course we’d go! Who wouldn’t?
e form a
Night watch every eve,
and head out–young and old– to prowl in shadows, dark and deep: a kitten’s heart is
Bold! ”
This is an advance, uncorrected proof. Not for resale, duplication, or reposting. Please do not quote without comparison to the finished book.
This is an advance, uncorrected proof. Not for resale, duplication, or reposting. Please do not quote without comparison to the finished book.
This is an advance, uncorrected proof. Not for resale, duplication, or reposting. Please do not quote without hat good are grand adventures if comparison to the finished book. we cats can’t prize our
story?
We
Nighthawks gather when it’s dark
and ponder feats of glory. f how we snatched the fastest birds– caught goldfish without fail! Of how we stalked the moonlit mouse and told the
TALLEST TALE. ”
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This is an advance, uncorrected proof. Not for resale, duplication, or reposting. Please e feel the warm grassdo onnot ourquote paws without comparison to the finished book. and sniff the
gentle breeze.
To share the shade on summer days puts all catkind at ease.
he chance to be in company is one of life’s great treasures. Remember this gift most of all: delight in
simple pleasures. ”
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This is an advance, uncorrected proof. Not for resale, duplication, or reposting. Please do not quote without comparison to the finished book.
This is an advance, uncorrected proof. Not for resale, duplication, or reposting. Please do not quote without comparison to the finished ith book. grand jeté and relevé
show off your ability. Time to dance and
pounce and prance!
Celebrate agility!
his nimbleness brings shouts of praise. Each movement is so tasteful! That ballet style makes most folks smile. We’re cats! Of course we’re
Graceful! ”
“
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here’s fanfare and excitement when we cats begin a
chase.
Will I catch you? Will you catch me? And who will win the race?
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o groom your
whiskers, tuck your tails,
and give those paws a lick.
To prove your speed, you kittens need the gift of being
quick! ”
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This is an advance, uncorrected proof. Not for resale, duplication, or reposting. Please do not quote without henthe sunbeams comparison to finished soak book.a room with light
and beds are for the taking, we cats seek out a
comfy spot
to keep ourselves from waking. t’s bliss to
snooze the day away . . .
the hours become hazy. There’s nothing quite so rousing as the act of being
Lazy. ”
“ here comes an hour in every day when kits and cats go
wild!
A time like this we’re sure is had by every human child.
hen toys and strings and balls and things are dumped out by the trayful, and every game is up for grabs . . . How could we not be
Playful? ”
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This is an advance, uncorrected proof. Not for resale, duplication, or reposting. Please do not quote without comparison to the finished book.
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othing really scares us . . . well, at least not for too long. We tend to be quite
fearless and
that makes a kitten strong. o gather all your courage, Kits! Go forth to ride the wave. Don’t stand and stare; embrace the All kits are truly
Brave! ”
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dare.
This is an advance, uncorrected proof. Not for resale, duplication, or reposting. Please do not quote without comparison the their finished hen cats relax andtoclose eyesbook.
and kittens stop their stirring, we share a soft and rumbled song that people know as
purring.
t brings a quiet, peaceful spell that’s sweet and sentimental. A rhythmic tone that sets the mood for being
calm and Gentle. ”
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he Kits have learned their
Feline Arts
and what’s more—they had fun! Dear Mama Cat is very pleased. She feels her duty’s done.
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heir just reward? A picnic feast perched high upon a beam. To overlook their world at last is every
kitten’s dream.
Do you recognize any of the artwork in this book? Learn more about the artists and the creations that inspired Mama Cat below.
1. The Study of a Student (circa 1940s), Laura Wheeler Waring The Study of a Student shows Laura Wheeler Waring’s love for learning and achievements in her own education. She finished school in Philadelphia at the top of her class and won a scholarship to study art in Paris. Waring was inspired by art she saw in Europe, particularly by a group of artists called the Impressionists. She admired their use of light, movement, and color so much that she wanted to use this style in her own paintings. With dynamic brushstrokes and bright colors, Waring painted vibrant portraits of African American icons, heroes, and everyday people. Her ability to powerfully present her subjects with passion, dignity, and sophistication serves as an example of her legacy.
2. The Last Supper (1495–98), Leonardo da Vinci The Last Supper is one of the most recognizable pieces of art in the world. And it was painted by one of the most famous artists, sculptors, and inventors that the Western world has ever known—Leonardo da Vinci. The painting depicts Jesus Christ and his disciples sharing Christ’s last
This is an Passover advance, meal.uncorrected Da Vinci portraysproof. the moment after Jesus claims one of his Not for resale, duplication, or disciples will betray him. You won’t find this painting in a museum—da reposting. Please do not quote without Vinci painted it directly on the dining hall wall of the Convent of Santa comparison to the finished book. Maria delle Grazie in Milan, Italy.
3. The Birth of Venus (1485–86), Sandro Botticelli The Birth of Venus illustrates the story of the Roman goddess of love and beauty being born out of the ocean’s sea spray. Winds push her to shore as a woman, perhaps the goddess of spring, waits to cloak her in flowers. The artist Sandro Botticelli was famous for painting mythological and religious subjects. He was hired to make the painting for a member of the wealthy Medici family, possibly as a wedding present. For such a joyful celebration, Botticelli chose to paint the divine symbol of true love.
4. The Night Watch (1642), Rembrandt van Rijin A group of city guardsmen in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, wanted their picture taken. But there were no cameras in 1642. So they hired Rembrandt van Rijin to paint them all in a group portrait. Rembrandt painted each man as he really looked—warts and all! The approach was unusual, but the world came to love it. Even though the scene takes place during the day, the painting became known as The Night Watch in the late 1700s. By then, the painting’s varnish had darkened so much with dirt and age that it looked more like night.
5. Nighthawks (1942), Edward Hopper Edward Hopper wanted to paint a picture that revealed life in a big city. But he wanted to show a different part of that life. There aren’t any crowds or noise in Nighthawks. Instead, Hopper painted four people sitting in a brightly lit diner while the city sleeps in darkness around them. Some people think the painting feels lonely. Some think it feels quiet and thoughtful. What Hopper hoped the painting shows is that
This is an advance, proof. even when uncorrected we are together, we can be lost in our own secret worlds. Not for resale, duplication, or reposting. Please do not quote without 6. AtoSunday on La book. Grande Jatte (1884–86), comparison the finished Georges Seurat
What could be better than going to the park on a warm summer’s day? In his painting, Georges Seurat wanted people to feel like they were on the banks of the Seine River, enjoying the view and cool breezes. There is a lot of action in the painting—fishing, strolling, boating, and playing music—yet the people look very still and content in the shade of trees and umbrellas. Seurat used a new technique, called pointillism, that used small dots of color, relying on viewers to use their imagination to blend his dots into the images he wanted them to see.
7. The Dancing Class (circa 1870), Edgar Degas Edgar Degas loved the ballet. What it shared about the human spirit spoke to his artistic heart. So it is not surprising that so much of Degas’s works— his paintings, drawings, and sculptures—focus on ballerinas and the art of the dance. What is surprising is that instead of painting performances, he showcased rehearsals, quiet moments backstage, and dance classes. Degas felt these moments were more revealing and brought viewers closer to the reality of this artful world.
8. Jockey on a Galloping Horse (1887), Eadweard Muybridge American entrepreneur and politician Leland Stanford was sure his horse, Sallie Gardner, could fly. He just needed to prove it. He asked Eadweard Muybridge to help show that Sallie’s hooves all left the ground at once while she ran. Muybridge was a photographer who knew how to take pictures of objects in motion. He lined up twelve cameras—each with a trip wire—on a racetrack. When Sallie ran by, she tripped the shutters, and each camera took her picture. If you look closely at the second and third pictures in the series, Sallie is “flying” down the track. Muybridge’s work helped start the motion picture industry.
9. Bedroom in Arles (1888), Vincent van Gogh This bedroom is so colorful and welcoming! And that is the way Vincent van wanted it to be. Influenced by the Japanese prints he collected, he made This is an Gogh advance, uncorrected proof. sure not to paint shadows. Although Not for resale, duplication, or the window is closed, the room is not He purposefully used bright and varied colors. In a letter to his brother reposting. dark. Please do not quote without he wrote he painted the furniture comparison tothat the finished book. square and solid so that viewers could imagine “unswerving rest.” Bedroom in Arles is a painting that invites company. What a lovely place to nap.
10. Children’s Games (1560), Pieter Bruegel the Elder Who doesn’t like playing games? In Pieter Bruegel the Elder’s very busy painting Children’s Games, he depicts children involved in over eighty different games—blowing soap bubbles, spinning tops, rolling hoops, playing hide-and-seek . . . to share just a few. Most paintings of the time were portraits of wealthy people or religious paintings, so historians are intrigued by the paintings of Bruegel. He painted crowded and colorful works that show the everyday life of ordinary people.
11. Under the Wave off Kanagawa (Kanagawa oki nami ura) (1830–32), Katsushika Hokusai Under the Wave off Kanagawa is just one woodblock print from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjûrokkei). Can you see Mount Fuji off in the distance? The mountain is a sacred place in Japan, and the artist Katsushika Hokusai wanted to show respect, so he echoed the shape of the mountain in the crest of the nearest wave. Hokusai painted waves for many years before he attempted this work. None of his earlier efforts expressed such energy and danger. The three small boats seem fragile and yet determined to triumph.
12. The Banjo Lesson (1893), Henry Ossawa Tanner Henry Ossawa Tanner was the son of an enslaved woman who escaped via the Underground Railroad and a preacher. Tanner’s first career was as a photographer in Georgia, but his business didn’t thrive, and he left to learn about painting in Paris. At the time, some Americans only saw a bleak side of African American life. Tanner wanted to paint a more tender truth. In The Banjo Lesson, a grandfather patiently encourages his grandson’s love of music. While the child plucks the strings, the grandfather holds the weight of the banjo and the child. Who could not succeed with such loving support?
This is an advance, uncorrected proof. Not for 13. resale, or Newduplication, York Construction Workers Lunching on a reposting. Please do not quote without Crossbeam (1932), Charles Clyde Ebbets comparison to the finished book. It took over seventy years for Charles Clyde Ebbets to be identified as the photographer of this famous image. When it was taken, photographers were not widely considered to be artists, so their images often went uncredited. Some wrongly felt there was no art in simply working the shutter of a camera. But Ebbets knew there was art in all types of work, including the work of building a skyscraper. Taken during the Great Depression, Ebbets’s photograph depicts eleven men lunching over 800 feet above New York City. They look casual, even relaxed, in his staged image, but their position on the beam also shows boldness and courage. Capturing such a dynamic image is art indeed.
Artwork used with permission from the following museums and libraries: The Study of a Student, Collection of Dr. Constance E. Clayton, Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, Philadelphia, US The Last Supper, Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan, Italy / Bridgeman Images The Birth of Venus, Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence, Tuscany / Bridgeman Images The Night Watch, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, The Netherlands / Bridgeman Images Nighthawks, The Art Institute of Chicago, IL, US / Bridgeman Images A Sunday on La Grande Jatte, The Art Institute of Chicago, IL, US / Bridgeman Images The Dancing Class, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, US / Scala Group Jockey on a Galloping Horse, Private Collection, The Stapleton / Bridgeman Images Bedroom in Arles, Musee d’Orsay, Paris, France / Bridgeman Images Children’s Games, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna / Bridgeman Images Under the Wave off Kanagawa, private collection / Bridgeman Images The Banjo Lesson, Collection of the Hampton University Museum, Hampton, Virginia, US New York Construction Workers Lunching on a Crossbeam, Bettmann / Charles C. Ebbets
The illustrations in this book were created using pencil and digital media. Set in Alburgone, Bentham, Bodoni, Burford Base, Cherry Swash, Olivier, and Shocking Script. Library of Congress Control Number 2021948817 ISBN 978-1-4197-6051-8 Text © 2022 Jenn Bailey Illustrations © 2022 Nyangsongi Book design by Nicola Price Cover © 2022 Magic Cat
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First published in the United Kingdom in 2022 by Magic Cat Publishing Ltd. First published in North America in 2022 by Magic Cat Publishing, an imprint of ABRAMS. All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, mechanical, electronic, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the publisher. Printed and bound in China 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Abrams Books are available at special discounts when purchased in quantity for premiums and promotions as well as fundraising or educational use. Special editions can also be created to specification. For details, contact specialsales@abramsbooks.com or the address below.