Jonathan David Fineberg Books

"When I was the age of these children I could draw like Raphael. It took me many years to learn how to draw like these children."--Pablo Picasso. The notion that modern art resembles children's drawings is a long-standing cliché, yet for some modernists, this connection was explicit. This groundbreaking book focuses on modern masters like Klee, Kandinsky, Picasso, and Miró, presenting material from child art collections that influenced their greatest works. Jonathan Fineberg, the first art historian to delve into this connection, explores the significance of children's art for key modernists from Matisse to Pollock. The book juxtaposes modern masterpieces with children's drawings that directly inspired them. Fineberg discusses the impact of primitivism and Freudian thought on these artists, highlighting their appreciation for children's art due to its naive spontaneity, imaginative visual language, and universal candor. Each master’s reasons for collecting child art reflect their unique styles. Fineberg reveals major collections of child art assembled by celebrated modernists, with many examples reproduced for the first time. He examines how artists like Larionov, Kandinsky, Klee, and others utilized child art to achieve their artistic breakthroughs. With over 170 color plates and 140 black-and-white illustrations, this visually compelling work will inspire new research among art historians and encourage museum visitors to v

This volume features thirteen esteemed critics and scholars examining the significant yet often overlooked impact of children's art on modern art's development. It illustrates how children's art and the essence of childhood have inspired renowned artworks, symbolized artistic spontaneity and authenticity, and offered insights into the core human qualities that modern artists explore. The collection builds on Jonathan Fineberg's influential work, The Innocent Eye, which highlighted how many modern art masters were inspired by children's drawings. The contributors delve deeper into Fineberg's themes while exploring new avenues in the study of children's art. They analyze the influence of child art on artists like Kandinsky, Klee, Larionov, and Miró, investigate various styles of children's art, and discuss Romanticism's impact on perceptions of child art. Additionally, they consider the concepts of giftedness versus education in children's drawings and the link between children's art and primitivism. The book provides rare insights into the creative processes of modern artists, featuring personal anecdotes about Miró and new findings related to the Russian avant-garde. Drawing from art theory, psychology, and detailed examinations of artworks and texts, this work will engage art historians, psychologists, and educators alike.