size of the original painting: 11.5 inches x 9.76 inches
Look at this beautiful day at the sandbox! And look at how engrossed this little girl is in her work. Can she feel the sun on her cheek? Is there a breeze? What sounds might she hear? Do you think she’s alone, or is anyone else with her?Fun Fact:
In 1850, Germans built sand gardens so that poor, immigrant children had the chance to play outside. Poor or not, all children are lucky sandboxes were invented!
To Think About: If this was your painting, who would be in the sandbox?
Meet the Artist:
Mary Curtis Richardson was born in New York. She and her family moved to California during the Gold Rush where her dad taught her how to draw and engrave. Mary and her sister moved back to New York to study wood engraving, then moved back to California. Years later, Mary went to school to learn how to paint. People liked her portraits so much they told her to make more!
Mary loved painting the world the way she saw it. Her very favorite thing to paint were moms with their children, which she is best known for.
Fun Fact: Mary didn’t like interviews and wasn’t interested in becoming famous. She didn’t think it was important for the world to know who painted something. Mary believed her work made the difference—not the fact that people knew she made it. What mattered to Mary was that her art helped people feel something. She believed that if a painting was good, the right people would find it.
What do you think? Is it important to know about an artist’s life or not?
Where in the world: The United States
