About the Paintings:
The Boat Builders
Winslow Homer spent the summer of 1873 in Gloucester, MA, where he painted The Boat Builders, c.1873 as part of a series of prints and drawings devoted to shipbuilding. The Boat Builders is part of the American Collection at the Indianapolis Museum of Art, Indianapolis, IN. By overlapping the toy boat and the sailing ship, Homer connects the real world of fishermen with the boy's imagination. The juxtaposition also predicts the future of these Cape Ann youths who will likely make their living from the sea.
Artist: Winslow Homer
Children Playing On The Beach
Mary Cassatt, an American artist, painted Children Playing on the Beach using oil paint on a canvas the measures 38 3/8'' x 29 1/4''. The painting is part of the Elisa Mellon Bruce collection at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC. Mary Cassatt painted two small children relaxed on the sand playing independently. Each is busy with their bucket and shovel unaware of the other and of the boats at sea. The direction of their legs leads the eye to the lower right side of the painting in a diagonal direction. The strong diagonal lines and shapes make this rather serene picture into a very visually active composition.
Artist: Mary Cassatt
Girls At The Piano
Renoir, a French artist, painted Girls at the Piano using oil paint. The canvas measures 45 5/8'' H x 35 3/8'' W. He painted this scene several times; this version is in the Musee de l'Orangerie in Paris, France. This lovely impressionist painting depicts a scene of two young girls by a piano. This is a picture of leisure, relaxation, and companionship. Our eyes are carried along sweeping lines and across forms which continue stop one another.
Artist: Pierre Renoir
Sunflowers
Vincent van Gogh painted Still Life: Vase with Twelve Sunflowers in 1888 in France. Today, the painting is located in Munich, Germany. It measures 37'' x 28''. The painting shows sunflowers in all stages of life, from fully in bloom to withering. Vincent would pick the sunflowers (his favorite flower) from the fields, place them in a vase, and then paint very fast before the flowers wilted.
Artist: Vincent Van Gogh
Puzzle images are
relatively simple. There are only 24 large (4" x 6") puzzle pieces, making
success and satisfaction more accessible and likely. The completed puzzle
measures a large 17" x 22", perfect for table tops and beneficial for persons
with visual impairment. These are not “frosty the snowman” type childish
subjects, they are masterpieces of classic art, perfectly suited and appropriate
for adults. Topics relate to lifetime events and are likely to trigger memories
and conversations while assembling the pieces. These puzzles are an excellent
and dignified activity to be shared and enjoyed.