California artist and art teacher, Michelle Abrams and her husband, Glenn, have coauthored and designed an art education book titled Blue Cows & Happy Fruit: Discovering the Artist in Your Child. Their first book celebrates the imagination and creativity of children and includes a visual art vocabulary, plus hands-on art and design exercises developed especially for beginning artists. 

This inspirational picture book, available on Amazon, as well as available from the Apple Bookstore showcases artwork from their delightful Kids-Did-It! Designs^® kids' art collection, and includes the same art and design exercises used as the basis for much of the outstanding artwork featured in their collection.

Together, using this inspirational book as a guide, parents, teachers and kids can learn basic art and design concepts, and explore their natural imagination and creativity.

With a delightful attitude and distinctive colorful palette, the 84 page book features more than 122 images created by 74 of Michelle's young art students, ranging in age from 3 to 14.

For more than 18 years, young students joined Michelle in her San Diego studio to study basic principles of art and design.  Her encouragement and contagious love for the arts helped to bring out their best. She often compares their artwork to the classics, describing it as, "...colorful and strikingly beautiful - some worthy of being called 'fine art' in the tradition of Matisse, Picasso or Miro."

"I encourage parents and students to take their artwork off the refrigerator, enlarge it, frame it and hang it on the wall. Treat it as fine art - that's what we do!  

‍                          ~ Michelle Abrams, Art Instructor

"Since I've been teaching art, I've discovered that young children - for a few fleeting years, have a delightfully innocent vision of the world.  If we take the time to teach them basic visual art concepts and encourage their efforts, we can easily discover their natural creativity. Their open minds and unfettered imaginations, still unhindered by reality, will see nothing unusual, for example, about a blue cow, or happy fruit!  During this precious time in their lives, the artistic possibilities are infinite!"

In 1996, Michelle's husband, Glenn, was first inspired to create Kids-Did-It! Properties, the art-licensing and design studio that collects, represents and publishes the student artwork. Aside from the thrill and satisfaction of being published artists, the young kids also earn royalties for the reproduction of their artwork.

"We even write their royalty payments on our own Kids-Did-It! illustrated checks!" says Glenn. "Students use the proceeds as extra allowance, for college savings or other causes important to them. Some students have even framed their first royalty check."

About the book, Glenn says, "Not only is it a great educational tool for parents and teachers - or any beginning artist who wants to learn art basics - it's a great introduction to wonderful artwork made by kids that's truly delightful and very inspiring!"