Celebrate the creative process of pioneering American abstract painter Joan Mitchell in this beautifully
illustrated STEAM picture book, perfect for all kinds of young creators.It’s 1983, and American artist Joan
Mitchell is in her studio outside Paris, transforming her emotions and memories into a symphony of colors
and shapes. Inspired by her friend’s description of an idyllic hidden valley in France, Mitchell creates 21
massive paintings—her Grande Vallée series —bursting with vibrant, energizing hues. But she doesn’t paint
the valley’s flowers and meadows. She paints a feeling about them—abundance, freedom, liveliness—creating
a harmonious blend of drips, splashes, and brushstrokes in rainbow colors. When the paint dries, it's time
to share her valley with the world.This inspiring, poetic picture book about an influential yet lesser-known
American artist provides a snapshot of a creator who deserves as much acclaim as better-known Abstract
Expressionists like Jackson Pollock or Willem de Kooning. Author Lisa Rogers shares both the despair and
delight Mitchell experienced throughout her career, while acclaimed illustrator Stacy Innerst’s bright artwork
captures the movement and energy of Mitchell’s work, as her paintings develop from page to page.