Picture Books: A Child's First Introduction to Art

You have read this one so many times you could do it with your eyes closed, and your three-year-old still stops on the same page every night to point at the moon.

They are not stalling. They are looking at art. Long before a child sets foot in a gallery, the illustrations in a picture book are teaching them about color, shape, texture, and the way a picture can make you feel something. Picture books are often a child's first introduction to art, and they arrive in the friendliest possible setting.

Here is why picture books are a child's first introduction to art, how The Children's Museum of Wilmington is building on that idea through a new grant-funded program, and simple ways to look at books more closely at home. Story Cooks and Crafty Kids already bring books and art together every week in our daily programs, included with admission.

Quick Answer: Why Are Picture Books a Child's First Art Gallery?

A picture book is often the first place a child meets original artwork, and it shows up in a lap instead of behind a velvet rope. In one book, a child can encounter:

• Color and mood, and how a gray page feels different from a golden one

• Texture and technique, from torn-paper collage to watercolor to woodcut

• Composition, or how an artist decides what goes in the middle of the page

• Storytelling through pictures, including the details the words never mention

• Many artistic styles and traditions, side by side on one shelf

Children look at these pages dozens of times, which is more attention than most of us give a painting in a museum.

The idea has deep roots. When Eric Carle and his wife founded The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art, they explained that picture books are an introduction to literature for young children, and they also wanted to introduce the youngest guests to the joys of looking at picture book art.

Picture This! Exploring Art Through Various Media

This year, The Children's Museum of Wilmington received funding through the 2026 Arts and Culture Grants Program, administered by the Arts Council of Wilmington and New Hanover County and funded by The Endowment. The grant supports a project called Picture This! Exploring Art Through Various Media, which creates arts experiences tied directly to children's book illustrations.

The program brings published children's literature into the museum's art programming. As the museum describes it, "This project will incorporate published children's literature that highlights diverse artistic styles, global art traditions, and foundational art concepts. Using these works as inspiration, children and caregivers will participate in hands-on activities that encourage creative expression, storytelling, and skill-building."

Why Books and Art Belong Together

The goal is a shared experience for the whole family. "By enhancing our literacy offerings and carefully curated activities, we create opportunities for our visitors to explore stories together and draw inspiration not only from the characters, settings, and themes, but also from the artistic styles and illustrations of the books themselves," the museum explains. "This shared experience encourages children and adults alike to translate literary and visual elements into their own creative expressions, fostering imagination, artistic exploration, and meaningful engagement with literature."

From the Page to Their Own Hands

The best part of looking at art with young children is what happens next, which is that they want to try it. A child who has just seen a collage wants to tear paper. A child who has seen a painted night sky wants blue on the brush. A child who has seen a stamped pattern wants to press their own fingerprints across a page.

The Studio at CMoW is built for exactly that, with an art studio, a reading nook, and a puppet theatre in one bright, open space. A story can move from the page to a paintbrush to a performance in a single visit, and every step along the way is its own kind of learning. Talking about a picture builds vocabulary. Choosing colors builds decision-making. Retelling a story with puppets builds memory and sequencing.

The Studio pairs an art space with a reading nook and a puppet theatre, and you can see it on our current exhibits page.

How to Read a Picture Book Like an Art Museum

You do not need an art background to do this well. A few questions open the whole page up:

• Ask what they notice first, then be quiet long enough for a real answer

• Wonder out loud how the artist made it, whether it looks painted, cut, or stamped

• Follow the colors and ask what kind of day it feels like on that page

• Look for something the words never say, like the cat hiding in every picture

• Try the technique together afterward with paper scraps, crayons, or paint

Building a Little Home Gallery

Library visits make this even easier. Borrow a few books with very different illustration styles, like a collage book, a watercolor book, and one with bold, simple shapes, and read them side by side. Ask which pictures your child likes best and why. Then hang their own book-inspired artwork on the fridge and call it a gallery opening.

Community Support Makes Programs Like This Possible

Grant funding and community giving are what allow a nonprofit museum to add new materials, new books, and new programming for families across New Hanover County. Every membership, donation, and sponsorship helps keep hands-on art within reach for children in our community, including families who visit through Museums for All. 

We are grateful to the Arts Council of Wilmington and New Hanover County and The Endowment for helping bring Picture This! to life.

Every Great Artist Was Once a Young Child

The next time your child stops on the same page for the hundredth time, they are doing something worth encouraging. Slow down with them, then come make something of your own with us downtown.