Joan Mitchell Paints a SymphonyJoan Mitchell Paints a Symphony

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, 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 picture book about an influential yet lesser-known American artist provides a snapshot of a creator who deserves as much acclaim as fellow abstract expressionists Jackson Pollock or Willem de Kooning. Author Lisa Rogers shares both the despair and delight Mitchell experienced throughout her career, while illustrator Stacy Innerst's artwork captures the movement and energy of Mitchell's work.