Mike Venezia has a number of different educational series that are exceptional.  Getting to Know the World’s Greatest Artists is one of our favorites.  Each book features a different artist and provides a great deal of information about not only the artist but the time period that he/she lived.  The illustrations are fun, and the books are highly engaging.  Venezia also has this series in a DVD format which we have gotten from the library.  The DVDs are very well done and include a surprising amount of humor.