CICADA BOOKS
Pippin Paints a Portrait by Charlotte Mei
Pippin wants to paint a self-portrait but his friends think he still has a lot to learn...
Pippin is painting a self-portrait, but his friends aren’t convinced by his efforts.They take him to see Angelique’s portrait, which takes inspiration from Cubism, Max’s
portrait, which is inspired by the work of Chris Ofili, Momo’s portrait, which draws from the work of Yayoi Kusama, and Dudley and Aarti’s painting, which is a colour field painting in the style of Mark Rothko.
Pippin is feeling very deflated, but his little friend Minky helps him to dig deep and find the artist inside himself.
This is a laugh-out-loud story of artistic expression, told in direct speech and adorable manga-inflected illustrations by Charlotte Mei. Packed with information about famous artists, their approaches and their mediums, this book simultaneously engages, informs and asks young readers to question how they themselves ‘read’ and create art.
Charlotte Mei is a stand-out illustrator and artist. Working across painting, illustration, ceramics and animation, she has a distinctive, playful approach which merges Manga influences and high art. Her collaborations with the likes of Nike, Hermes, Lazy Oaf and Converse as well as her editorial work has brought her a substantial and loyal Instagram following. This is her first book.
