I have long loved the symphonic overtures of a brush against canvas. Th e whimsical strokes, the powerful rushes, the soft, immaculate renderings all attract me to a plain of gratitude and memories and wishful fantasies.To confess, I also wrote this collection of essays as an exercise in intellectual enrichment concerning one of my favorite subjects: great artists. I have traveled throughout the world and visited some of the most fabulous museums imaginable so I may gleam a small portion of the lives of the artists whom I selected for this brief book.I selected two great pictures for each artists: ie The Straw Hat for Rubens; Fishing Boat on the Beach for Van Gogh; Symphony in White #3 for Whistler; Tobit and Anna for Rembrandt, etc. With each artist I delved into their lives with a specific and original interpretation of why they drew as they did. I also present a brief analysis of the paintings. It would take a reader a lot of research to accumulate what I present in so brief a space.This childrens book may serve to delight the young reader to learn more of the lives of the artists who had gained fame. The etchings are replicated so the child may draw within and yes, even outside the lines to experience the wonder of reds and greens and blues on an imaginary canvas.