Slice of Life Story Challenge #24 - Imagine!

 

 My focus this month is to explore writing invitations, mostly through newly published picture books, but possibly some other mentor texts as well.

Imagine! by Raúl Colón

bookshelves: 2018-book, art, creativity, imagination, picture-book, wordless, invitation-for-writing, inspiration  

When a boy skateboards through the city, he decides to stop at the Museum of Modern Art to explore. Lo and behold, as he admires certain paintings, they step out their frames and join him! They leave the museum, dancing, playing music, and have fun around the city, eventually inspired him to create his own art. Like one of my other favorites by Colón, Draw!, he invites us to imagine the impossible, to let our imaginations and creative spirits soar! Loved reading the Author's Note!

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Writing invitation: write about an experience with art, or how art (of any kind) inspired you to create your own.

     After reading Colón's Author's Note about how it wasn't until he was an adult when he visited an art museum, leading him to wonder what it would have meant for him if he had seen all those original works of art as a child, I thought about my own art museum experiences, also as an adult.  I have been fortunate to visit some beautiful museums throughout the United States and Europe, but one experience stands out...when I got to see the Mona Lisa in person in 2010! 

     One of the first things I remember about the experience was how small the it was.  I had expected a giant painting, but she is, in fact, much smaller than I realized.  It was also extremely crowded.  I actually snapped this photo while standing very far back and on tip-toe so I could zoom in and get her without people blocking the view.  I marveled at how many people had gazed at her mysterious expression throughout her years. I also wondered, what IS it that makes her so famous?!    When I read Imagine!, I immediately thought of that moment when I got to be in the same room as that painting.

     What if she could step out of the frame and wander through the city with us?  What would she say?  Would she FINALLY tell us the secret behind that expression?  What are her stories?  I'd love to know!