Information Page for Parents and Teachers (Questions & Answers)

1. Which artists can I find more information about by using this website?

On the Home page you will find links to: information on Aboriginal Art, information on Australian Multimedia artists like John McCormack, Stelarc, Michael Buckley and Sally Pryor, information on the Mexican Artist Frida Kahlo, Pablo Picasso, information and works by the Pre-Raphaelists, and the 2 superrealists Chuck Close and Duane Hanson.

On the page with the picture of the Louvre Museum you can find a link that will take you to the Louvre Museum in Paris and there you can find out information about the works of art that are there.

The Page that shows Camille and her mother inside the Louvre, you can find links to more information about Van Gogh, Salvador Dali, Jackson Pollock, Egyptian art and Greek art.

On the last page about the story where Camille and her mother are looking at Camille's painting in the Museum, you can find links to more information about the artist Barnett Newman, Henry Moore, Paul Klee and Camille herself.

In the "Meet an Artist" link, you will see the works of Australia's impressive Northern Territory artist, Elka Kerkhofs. You can also see a QuickTime movie of her speaking about her work. She is the artist of the month. Every few month or so, there will be another artist featured in this link so come back often.

In the "Listen to the Music" link you will see Allyson Mills talking about an aboriginal song that her grandfather taught her. It is the kriol version of "Waltzing Matilda" and is a great version of the song. You can write to Allyson if you want to ask her any questions about the Aboriginal Culture. She'll be able to answer you because she is an Aboriginie.

2. What is the best way to use this book?

Before reading your child Camille's Fakes show him/her works of art done by the artists and/or in the styles mentioned in the book. Most Art History Books (Janson's History of Art etc.) will include the art pieces or works done in the artistic styles mentioned in Camille's Fakes. You can also just go to this website and show your child some of the works of art that are here. If you want to explore some of the styles or works mentioned in the story, there are some excellent references in the glossary of the book. Children are particularly fascinated with the superrealists' works! They are astounded to find out that these works are actually paintings or sculptures etc. and are very impressed with this.

When you have finished looking at different art works, read Camille's Fakes. While reading the story, you can remind the child/children of the works that you have just viewed that are done by one of the artists in the book or in the same style as mentioned in the book.

Doing this this exercise with the child/children makes reading the book a much richer and more relevant experience for them.

3. What are some good exercises to do with kids after they have read the book?

There are lots. Here are some of them.

When you have finished reading the book you can ask the children what their favorite art work is and find out why.

Have the children do an art work that is similar in style to something mentioned or seen in the book or they could do their own FAKE.

Have the children pose a superrealist "sculptures" somewhere and see what the reaction of the public is to these very real figures.

Take the children to a museum and have them pick out a piece done in the style or by an artist that was mentioned in the book.

Talk about how the styles of work that they have seen in Camille's Fakes are also portrayed in music and literature. Give examples of works that are "abstract expressionism" in music (like Jazz) and literature etc..

Discuss the benefits of art.

Talk about why men and women create.

Look at things in our contemporary life that have an art component to it like the current movies or music web pages etc.

Use the Camille website http://www.maryjaneoverall.com.au for information and resources on the arts and artists.

Have the children create an art work in their own style or in the style of one of the artists that are in the book and send it to me to put into the Kids' Art Gallery.

Have the children write to one of the featured artists on the site to ask them questions about their art.

Have the children send in their comments about the book to place on the website.

4. Why did you choose the works of art that you used in the book?

Because I wanted to make a picture book, I had to keep it to a certain number of pages and thus could only include a certain number of works of art. I was also aware of the copyright laws. When you use another artist's work, you have to pay for it. I wanted to keep these costs down especially since this was my first book.

I chose Frida Kahlo's work because I lived in Mexico for 7 years and she is one of my heroes.

I chose "Loritja Women at a Rockhole" by Lottie Nangala because I wanted to show the world the rich and amazing works that the Aboriginal people do here in Australia. I didn't have much time to do all of the paintings in this book (26 days to be exact.) Some of the Aboriginal works are extremely complex so I picked a beautiful but fairly easy piece to copy. Kids should really have a look at more Aboriginal art works as they are quite amazing and often times not included in Art History books.

I choose Duane Hanson and Chuck Close's work to represent the superrealists' style because I am to this day amazed at the patience and incredible exactness with which these two artists work.

I put in a Salvador Dali and a Vincent Van Gogh work because they are two artists I truly admire.

I choose the painting of "Miss Mary Elizabeth Rollins" by George Caleb Bingham because she is my great, great grandmother. This painting is hanging on my brother, Rollins', wall.

I have links to all of the artists and art styles that are mentioned in the book on the web page. Be sure to have a look.

Home/The Story/Art Sites for Kids/The Publisher/What Kids Say About the Book/The Author/Q&A/Chat&Paint/Kids'Gallery/Meet an Artist/Music/Old Art Exhibits