art

Which is the consumer, which the consumed?

the artwork of Kevin LCK

Wonders  |  art, gadgets, diorama, design, Kevin LCK

Follow Your Curiosity

"Photos are the perfect moment, captured in time, where you are responding to the photographer, when you are caught loving them. You can't tell me that isn't ALWAYS beautiful, because it is."

— Dawn French

for Creatives  |  photography, art, Dawn French, value the art, art interpretation, artist-audience relationship

"In the emotional reaction to a work of art, you do not fill in from yourself; you leave yourself."

— Robert Olen Butler

for Creatives  |  art, Robert Olen Butler, art interpretation, artist-audience relationship

"Fiction is the art form of human yearning."

— Robert Olen Butler

for Creatives  |  reading, art, Robert Olen Butler, artist in the art, literary fiction, writing

"chindōgu珍道具 : the Japanese art of creating gadgets that are not exactly useful, but are not exactly useless

 

Wonders  |  Japanese, vocab, art, gadgets, culture

Follow Your Curiosity

Layered Paper Sculpture Comes to Life

the artwork of Calvin Nicholls

Wonders  |  art, artists, sculpture, Calvin Nicholls

Follow Your Curiosity

"Writing is never a perfect art, but you can perfect the work that you put into it."

— Virgil Suárez

for Creatives  |  creating isn't easy, art, writing, KEEP CREATING, Virgil Suárez

Photo-like Paintings More Real than Reality

the artwork of Evgeny Lushpin

Wonders  |  art, artists, painting, Russian, Evgeny Lushpin

Follow Your Curiosity

"It's better not to know so much about what things mean or how they might be interpreted [in art] or you'll be too afraid to let things keep happening. Psychology destroys the mystery, this kind of magic quality. It can be reduced to certain neuroses or certain things, and since it is now named and defined, it's lost its mystery and the potential for a vast, infinite experience."

— David Lynch

for Creatives  |  magic/mystery of creating/art, art, protect the art, filmmaking, artist's message, value the art, creative freedom, David Lynch, art interpretation

"The artist touched the canvas and spent time to create that, and I can feel it.  Their passion is imprisoned in their work, or maybe it's time that's embedded there, not the passion." (artist)

— Kinukoy Yamabe Craft (artwork by Ann M. Riggott)

for Creatives  |  art, artists, artist in the art, value the art, painting, Kinukoy Yamabe Craft, Ann M. Riggott

"Short stories are the same: they generally thrive on very severe attention. But it’s an art, not a science, so some writers ... need a certain ornateness to achieve their effect."

— Marcel Theroux

for Creatives  |  art, short stories, language, writing, Marcel Theroux

"Art comes from the place where you dream.  It comes from your unconscious.  It comes from your white-hot center."

— Robert Olen Butler

for Creatives  |  magic/mystery of creating/art, art, Robert Olen Butler

"The arts are strong and will endure, but artists need and deserve our support.  Nourish the arts, and they will nourish us right back."

— Salman Rushdie

for Creatives  |  art, artists, protect the art, value the art, artists supporting artists, Salman Rushdie

"In a climate that discourages innovation, scientists have adopted new roles as dissenters and protesters.  As they unite and march, they find new allies in the arts and humanities that have long spoken truth to power."

— Rachel Carson

for Creatives  |  artist integrity, art, value the art, artists supporting artists, creative freedom, Rachel Carson

"The best photographs are like bottled lightning, capturing an extraordinary, unrepeatable moment."

— Marcel Theroux

for Creatives  |  photography, art, creating in the moment, Marcel Theroux

"The power of science fiction is that you're able to experience the worst-case scenario without actually having to live it." (artist)

— Ryan Gosling (artwork by Tokyo Genso)

for Creatives  |  art, artists, sci-fi, Ryan Gosling, digital art, Tokyo Genso

Finding the Faces All Around Us

the artwork of Victor Nunes

Wonders  |  art, artists, drawing/illustration

Follow Your Curiosity

"If there were a manifesto for 21st century fiction writers, I hope it would go like this: Down with high-flown literature! Cast off genre servitude! The revolution is founded in authorial liberty. It regards story and art as equals."

— Donald Maass

for Creatives  |  create for YOURSELF, art, writing, protect the art, storytelling, genre, value the art, artists supporting artists, Donald Maass, creative freedom, categorization of art

"Art does NOT come from the mind.  It does not come from your rational, analytical faculties.  It does not come from ideas.  It does not come from theories.  It does not come from philosophies.  You don't write a book in order to express a theme or make symbols.  That's NOT the process."

— Robert Olen Butler

for Creatives  |  creative process, magic/mystery of creating/art, art, Robert Olen Butler, novel writing, creativity, writing, ideas

Graphite & Gold Leaf

the artwork of Yoann Lossel

Wonders  |  art, artists, French, Yoann Lossel

Follow Your Curiosity

"We need writers who know the difference between production of a market commodity and the practice of an art."

— Ursula K. Le Guin

for Creatives  |  art, writing, value the art, Ursula K. Le Guin

"I love reading fiction, but I can hardly stand to listen to a fiction writer talk about his or her book—it's like a painter talking about his painting or a composer describing a symphony.  You want to read the novel, you want to see the painting, you want to hear the music—you don't want to hear a lot of talk about it."

— Douglas Preston

for Creatives  |  art, artists, music, writing, painting, artist-audience relationship, Douglas Preston, composing

The Perfect Ice Ball: Hand-sculpted

Takayuki Suzuki (a.k.a. "The Ice Man) applies the Japanese aesthetic—and tradition of "omotenashi"—to the classic ice ball

Wonders  |  Japanese, videos, art, artists, drink, sculpture, whisky/whiskey, Takayuki Suzuki

Follow Your Curiosity

"With Art as forceps, pull that Truth."

— Ray Bradbury

for Creatives  |  artist integrity, art, Ray Bradbury

"Find Art.

Seize brush.  Take stance.  Do fancy footwork.  Dance.

Run race.  Try poem.  Write play."

— Ray Bradbury

for Creatives  |  art, artists, writing, poetry, KEEP CREATING, Ray Bradbury, artist's message, playwriting

Universes in Suspension

the artwork of Alejandro Burdisio

Wonders  |  art, artists, sci-fi, fantasy, Argentinian, Alejandro Burdisio

Follow Your Curiosity

"I also go out in the afternoons to shoot photographs.  I find that the process of training the eye to compose in the viewfinder helps me hone my ability to revise poems.   I've always loved the connections and cross-pollination between art forms."

— Virgil Suárez

for Creatives  |  photography, art, writing, poetry, editing, artists must EXPERIENCE, never stop LEARNING, Virgil Suárez

"If I was writing about a crow feather, I wanted to make sure I got the shape exactly right, the right point and feel.  This began my incorporating research into my poetry, and to this day, I still do a lot of research to make sure I always portray the natural world correctly." (artist)

— Aimee Nezhukumatathil (artwork by Jody Edwards)

for Creatives  |  nature, art, artists, writing, poetry, painting, flora & fauna, Aimee Nezhukumatathil, Jody Edwards

"I encourage writers to not look at their reviews, and I usually don't." (artist)

— J.A. Konrath (artwork by Charles-Joseph Traviès de Villers)

for Creatives  |  create for YOURSELF, artist integrity, creative fear, art, artists, J.A. Konrath, reviews, feedback/criticism/rejection, drawing/illustration, Charles-Joseph Traviès de Villers

"Magic is such a raw, emotional experience, and it can be used as a storytelling device.  Sometimes people scream and run away—what a profound effect!  There is no other art form that can do that.  You cannot make somebody gasp, scream, and run away by looking at a painting or watching a dance routine."

— Ben Hart

for Creatives  |  art, reaching your audience, storytelling, painting, Ben Hart, performance art, magic/illusion/mentalism, artist-audience relationship

"The ingredients for making a successful work to me are imagination, idea, composition, skill and dedication."

— Kinukoy Yamabe Craft

for Creatives  |  creative process, art, the successful artist, ideas, value the art, painting, never stop LEARNING, Kinukoy Yamabe Craft

"While our art cannot, as we wish it could, save us from wars, privation, envy, greed, old age, or death, it can revitalize us amidst it all."

— Ray Bradbury

for Creatives  |  art, artists, culture, Ray Bradbury, value the art

"How many people could tell you how much money they’ve given to their favourite artists or writers or creators? Not to platforms, not to businesses, to actual creatives?"

— Jon Westenberg

for Creatives  |  creating isn't easy, art, artists, protect the art, value the art, artists supporting artists, Jon Westenberg

Follow Your Curiosity

"Yes, absolutely it has to surprise us.  Surprise is the very basis of art.  Isn't it?"

— Debra Spark

for Creatives  |  art, writer-reader relationship, Debra Spark

"One of the benefits I get from doing [book] covers is, I get to read.  The main thing I like about what I do is that I'm away from reality and the real world where I live, in a make believe one—a land of someone else's imagination—as long as the project lasts.  I need that to survive." (artist)

— Kinukoy Yamabe Craft (artwork by Charlotte Bird)

for Creatives  |  reading, magic/mystery of creating/art, art, artists, fantasy, painting, Kinukoy Yamabe Craft, Charlotte Bird

"The writer who wants to tap the larger truth in himself must reflect the temptations of Joyce or Camus or Tennessee Williams, as exhibited in the literary reviews.  He must forget the money waiting for him in mass-circulation.  He must ask himself, 'What do I really think of the world, what do I love, fear, hate?' and begin to pour this on paper." (artist)

— Ray Bradbury (artwork by Fran Haley)

for Creatives  |  create for YOURSELF, artist integrity, creative fear, art, artists, writing, reviews, Ray Bradbury, painting, Albert Camus, James Joyce, Fran Haley, Tennessee Williams

"To give a sense of place, to me, is a thrilling thing. And a sense of place is made up of details. And so the details are incredibly important. If they're wrong, then it throws you out of the mood. And so the sound and music and color and shape and texture, if all those things are correct and a woman looks a certain way with a certain kind of light and says the right word, you're gone, you're in heaven. But it's all the little details."

— David Lynch

for Creatives  |  art, reaching your audience, filmmaking, David Lynch

"Expression is a necessity of life. ... Each person feels that drive."

— Jane Roberts

for Creatives  |  art, artists, creativity, the creative life, Jane Roberts

"The Art Spirit that sort of became my Bible, because that book made the rules for the art life.  It was one of those things that is so fantastic, because it sets you on your way."

— David Lynch

for Creatives  |  books, creative process, art, artists, nonfiction, the creative life, painting, David Lynch, Robert Henri

Follow Your Curiosity

"With poetry in particular, I just feel like Mother Nature is the best creator of metaphor on the planet." (artist)

— Aimee Nezhukumatathil (artwork by Josephine Wall)

for Creatives  |  nature, art, artists, language, writing, poetry, Aimee Nezhukumatathil

"Ten years ago a friend loaned me Parable of the Sower and it completely changed my life.  It caused me to view art, sci-fi, and literature in completely new ways.  I was very moved by the way Butler was able to seamlessly weave in heavy subject matters as race, gender, and class without ever compromising the integrity of the sci-fi."

— Paul Lewin

for Creatives  |  reading, books, artist integrity, art, sci-fi, writing, culture, value the art, Octavia E. Butler, Paul Lewin

Follow Your Curiosity

"That's where drawing came in; creativity kept me from seeing the reality of how terrible things were." (artist)

— Jon Contino (artwork by Kevin Serad)

for Creatives  |  art, artists, creativity, value the art, Jon Contino, drawing/illustration, Kevin Serad

"The surprise of what you'll find after rendering an image and how different if often comes out is the exact same thing I love about writing poems."

— Aimee Nezhukumatathil

for Creatives  |  creative process, magic/mystery of creating/art, art, writing, poetry, Aimee Nezhukumatathil, drawing/illustration

"I'm interested in transformation.  I'll take something that was fragile and delicate and transform it into something that is durable and rigid.  There is always this aspect for me of transcendence—something shifting, something changing."

— Jeff Koons

for Creatives  |  creative process, art, artist's voice, Jeff Koons

"If you're an artist and you're satisfied, then you're done being an artist.  There's more out there than you could ever imagine."

— Jon Contino

for Creatives  |  art, artists, creativity, KEEP CREATING, never stop LEARNING, Jon Contino

"We don't own [language].  We walk around pretending like we do.  We give it order and we grab it and control it and pretend that that's meaning, but it's an arbitrary, free-floating sign system, which means any other group of people could grab it differently and order it differently and make a different meaning.  It's like the ocean in that way.  You can't grab the ocean."

— Lidia Yuknavitch

for Creatives  |  art, language, writing, culture, Lidia Yuknavitch

"The little Brontës, with their kingdom of Gondaland, the infant Alcotts, young Robert Browning, and H.G. Wells all led an intensive dream-life which carried over into their maturity and took another form; and there are hundreds of authors who could tell the same stories of their youth." (artist)

— Dorothea Brande (artwork by Henrique Alvim Corrêa)

for Creatives  |  art, artists, sci-fi, fantasy, creativity, writing, storytelling, H.G. Wells, Dorothea Brande, drawing/illustration, Robert Browning, Louisa May Alcott, Brontë

"The Interview Fallacy [is] the fraudulent claim that the artist always knew what he was doing and how he was doing it and can explain the whole business judiciously later when the fires of the work have cooled." (artist)

— Charles Baxter (artwork by Andrew Ferez)

for Creatives  |  intuitive writing & pantsing, creative process, magic/mystery of creating/art, art, artists, creating in the moment, value the art, Andrew Ferez, Charles Baxter

"Images that make you linger, hungry to know the story behind them..."

the artwork of Rovina Cai

Wonders  |  art, artists, Rovina Cai, drawing/illustration

Follow Your Curiosity

"One of my favorite things about illustration is getting to delve into a writer's 'world.'"

— Rovina Cai

for Creatives  |  art, artist in the art, writing, writer-reader relationship, artist's voice, Rovina Cai, drawing/illustration

"I think the creation of beauty is an uplifting act that can help people.  Creating beautiful images that people can see, share, and take solace in is a laudable social goal."

— Clayton Cubitt

for Creatives  |  art, reaching your audience, value the art, Clayton Cubitt

"We readers know the power of fiction." (artist)

— Jon Phillips (artwork by Erika Doucesse)

for Creatives  |  reading, art, artists, value the art, digital art, Jon Phillips

"Convincing science, technology, engineering kids that art is important is a battle that I like to fight."

— Junot Díaz

for Creatives  |  art, creativity, value the art, Junot Díaz

"There is a lot of talk in creative fields about separating those who are creative and make things from all the other people, but that's fucking bullshit.  I don't think you can be a good designer if you don't have a business sense; I don't think you can be a good director if you don't have a sense of production.  I think it's all a part of the job and, frankly, we all have the capacity for creative output."

— Keith Ehrlich

for Creatives  |  art, artists, creativity, the successful artist, filmmaking, the creative life, design, Keith Ehrlich

"Expression, rather than repression, is vital."

— Jane Roberts

for Creatives  |  create for YOURSELF, art, creativity, protect the art, the creative life, value the art, creative freedom, Jane Roberts

"Making music and being an artist in any way, really, stems from an essentially self-centered place.  Some people will say that they make music or art to give something to the world, to share it with people, because they think people need to hear it.  I think most of that is bullshit.  You create things because they come from a place that is purely you.  It is very self-centered, which is not a bad thing—it is just the nature of creativity." 

— Tei Shi

for Creatives  |  create for YOURSELF, artist integrity, art, artists, creativity, music, reaching your audience, artist's voice, Tei Shi

"Your past is full of stories that have been composed in a certain way; that’s what memories are. But only when they decompose are you able to recompose them into new works of art." (artist)

— Robert Olen Butler (artwork by Andrew Ferez)

for Creatives  |  creative process, art, artists, Robert Olen Butler, writing, storytelling, Andrew Ferez

"I knew how powerfully good theatre could affect people.  I dragged unwilling friends along, and saw their reaction to good work and to rubbish.  I looked at the different audiences, and wondered about how they might change, how more people—people like my parents—could at least be offered the choice of becoming theatre-goers."

— Kenneth Branagh

for Creatives  |  art, value the art, Kenneth Branagh, theater, performance art

"With creative people ... there are always intrusions, hints or clues from ways of thinking that certainly appear foreign, and creative people use those hints and clues to construct an art, a musical composition or whatever. They sense a surge of power beneath."

— Jane Roberts

for Creatives  |  creative process, magic/mystery of creating/art, art, creativity, music, inspiration/the muse, Jane Roberts

"Writing is survival.  Any art, any good work, of course, is that."

— Ray Bradbury

for Creatives  |  art, writing, Ray Bradbury, value the art

"I had firm convictions of the importance of popular art, and of its power to make life seem richer and better.  I knew in my bones that drama need not be elitist."

— Kenneth Branagh

for Creatives  |  art, reaching your audience, value the art, acting, Kenneth Branagh

It's Always an Apt Time for Revolution

Old San Juan, Puerto Rico

Wonders  |  photography, art, culture, travel, artist's voice, artist's message, Puerto Rico

The High Art of Recycling

the rolled paper sculptures of Chie Hitotsuyama

Wonders  |  Japanese, art, artists, sculpture, Chie Hitotsuyama

Follow Your Curiosity

"The most important factor in provoking readers to spread the word about a story is an effect that the Penn researchers call 'awe.' This they defined as an 'emotion of self-transcendence, a feeling of admiration and elevation in the face of something greater than the self.' It demands of readers 'mental accommodation,' meaning readers must see the world in ways they didn't before." (artist)

— Donald Maass (artwork by Maurice Sendak)

for Creatives  |  reading, art, artists, writing, reaching your audience, Donald Maass

Life in Miniature

the artwork of Tatsuya Tanaka

Wonders  |  Japanese, art, artists, Tatsuya Tanaka, diorama

Follow Your Curiosity

"We never want our idea of our story to get in the way of letting our characters live." (artist)

— Alan Watt (artwork by Andrew Ferez)

for Creatives  |  characters, pantsing vs. plotting, art, artists, writing, Andrew Ferez, Alan Watt

"Artists are not intellectuals. We are sensualists. The objects we create are sensual objects."

— Robert Olen Butler

for Creatives  |  art, artists, Robert Olen Butler, writing

Balloon Animals as They Dream of Being

the balloon sculpting of Masayoshi Matsumoto

Wonders  |  Japanese, art, artists, sculpture, flora & fauna, Masayoshi Matsumoto

Follow Your Curiosity

"Particularly if you want to make a living at your art, you fall into the frame of mind in which you think that 'each minute is valuable'—but what you mean is that each minute must be a minute of production. But each moment must be valuable in itself, whatever you do with it."

— Jane Roberts

for Creatives  |  art, artists must EXPERIENCE, the creative life, value the art, Jane Roberts

The Metropolitan Pulse... captured

the artwork of Valerio D'Ospina

Wonders  |  art, artists, painting, Valerio D'Ospina, Italian

Follow Your Curiosity

Totem Pole, Story Pole: whale to thunderbird

chainsaw-carved by Donald Colps, Banff, Alberta, Canada

Wonders  |  art, artists, travel, totem, Canada, Donald Colps, carving, Canadian

Follow Your Curiosity

Landscaping Imagination

the artwork of Jacek Yerka

Wonders  |  art, artists, painting, Jacek Yerka, Polish

Follow Your Curiosity

"If you want to think your way into your fiction, if you think you can analyze your way into a work of art, we're going to be totally at odds philosophically about what art is and where it comes from."

— Robert Olen Butler

for Creatives  |  creative process, art, Robert Olen Butler, writing

"Aesthetics is for artists as ornithology is for the birds."

— Barnett Newman

for Creatives  |  art, artists, Barnett Newman

"The artistic medium of fiction writers—language—is not innately sensual. The medium is unforgiving whenever we look for it in our minds. Some visual artists do a lot of conceptualizing and still end up creating terrific works of art. They are able to do so because once they get out there in front of their canvases or their blocks of granite, they have to leave those ideas behind. The medium itself won't let them think."

— Robert Olen Butler

for Creatives  |  creative process, art, artists, Robert Olen Butler, writing, ideas, sculpture, painting

In Defense of Libraries

In Defense of Libraries

You hear of one library closing, then another.  But I wasn't fazed.  I didn't care.  Not even when I admittedly love libraries...

Thoughts  |  reading, books, Neil Gaiman, Japanese, art, manga, protect the art, value the art, libraries, Hiro Arikawa, Sukumo Adabana

Continue Reading

"Man, if you gotta ask, you'll never know." (in answer to being asked to define jazz)

— Louis Armstrong

for Creatives  |  magic/mystery of creating/art, art, music, value the art, Louis Armstrong

Magical Realism

the art of Eric Roux-Fontaine

Wonders  |  art, artists, painting, Eric Roux-Fontaine, French

Follow Your Curiosity

"For me, the thing that triggers the moment in my unconscious when a character is ready to speak or be spoken of, ready to be a story, is a flash of intuition about that character's yearning. What is it at her deepest level that she yearns for?" (artist)

— Robert Olen Butler (art by Ture Ekroos)

for Creatives  |  characters, creative process, art, artists, Robert Olen Butler, writing, Ture Ekroos

The Crossroads of Should and Must

Find and Follow Your Passion... (written & illustrated by Elle Luna)

for Creatives  |  books, art, nonfiction, creativity, the creative life, Elle Luna, priorities, design your life

Follow Your Curiosity

Something—Everything—from a Scribble...

the artwork of Vince Low

Wonders  |  art, artists, music, Vince Low, Malaysian

Follow Your Curiosity

Totem for Travelers (complete w/ natural headdress!)

Newtown Beach, Nadi, Viti Levu, Fiji

Wonders  |  photography, art, travel, Fiji, totem

Fictional Landscapes Become Physical

book sculpting by Kyle Kirkpatrick

Wonders  |  books, art, artists, British, sculpture, book art, Kyle Kirkpatrick, diorama

Follow Your Curiosity

Saving Mr. Banks

(written by Kelly Marcel & Sue Smith, starring Emma Thompson, Tom Hanks, Colin Farrell, Ruth Wilson & Paul Giamatti)

for Creatives  |  creative process, artist integrity, art, artists, drama, film, artist in the art, comedy, biography, writing, Tom Hanks, filmmaking, storytelling, Ruth Wilson, Kelly Marcel, Sue Smith, Emma Thompson, Colin Farrell, Paul Giamatti

Follow Your Curiosity

"It's not what an artist does that counts, but what he is."

— Pablo Picasso (art by same)

for Creatives  |  artist integrity, art, artists, artist in the art, the creative life, painting, Pablo Picasso

"Great fiction opens readers' hearts and, once they are captive and pliant, then opens their minds." (artist)

— Donald Maass (art by Paulo Zerbato)

for Creatives  |  reading, art, artists, writing, writer-reader relationship, Donald Maass, Paulo Zerbato

"There are no mistakes in art.  There are accidents—and accidents can lead to something new."

— Al Jenkins

for Creatives  |  creative process, art, inspiration/the muse, value the art, Al Jenkins

"I usually don't have a preconceived notion of what I'm going to create.  Most of the time I sketch with no goal or objective.  My hand will draw something and then it reveals itself to me."

— Noelle Dass

for Creatives  |  creative process, magic/mystery of creating/art, art, artists, creating in the moment, painting, Noelle Dass

"You can't borrow awe.  You can't plot it into existence.  You can't provoke it through pretty words.  It has to come from you.  Your fiction will be awesome to the extent that you cut loose from convention, go to places that belong to you alone and embrace your godlike inner storyteller." (artist)

— Donald Maass (art by Spaceweaver)

for Creatives  |  artist integrity, art, artists, writing, storytelling, Donald Maass, creative freedom

"Self-consciousness is the enemy of all art, be it acting, writing, painting or living itself, which is the greatest art of all ... creativity, at heart, is the essence of man's being."

— Ray Bradbury

for Creatives  |  creative fear, art, creativity, writing, Ray Bradbury, the creative life, painting, acting

"One of the essentials is to create a vacuum in my life which can only be satisfactorily filled by some form of creative work—whether it be writing, painting, sculpting, composing or just building a boat."

— Ian Fleming

for Creatives  |  art, creativity, writing, Ian Fleming, the creative life, sculpture, value the art, painting

"Through writing, through that process, they realize that they become more intelligent, and more honest and more imaginative than they can be in any other part of their life." (artist)

— Russell Banks (art by Alexander Jansson)

for Creatives  |  art, artists, creativity, writing, the creative life, creative freedom, Russell Banks, Alexander Jansson

 "A good story occurs when the author travels, or even plummets, into the depths of vulnerability in search of truths that otherwise go untold." (artist)

— Grant Faulkner (art by Graham Franciose)

for Creatives  |  artist integrity, creative fear, art, artists, writing, storytelling, artists must EXPERIENCE, Graham Franciose, Grant Faulkner

"Being a photographer is making people look at what I want them to look at." (artist)

— Ruth Orkin (photo by Vadim Trunov)

for Creatives  |  nature, photography, animals, art, artists, reaching your audience, value the art, Ruth Orkin, Vadim Trunov

"Whether it's the meaning of life or why the guy killed the old pawnbroker, we're always looking for answers." (artist)

— Garth Stein (art by Graham Franciose)

for Creatives  |  creative process, art, artists, Garth Stein, the creative life, Graham Franciose

"No art ever came out of not risking your neck."

— Eudora Welty

for Creatives  |  artist integrity, creative fear, art, writing, Eudora Welty, TAKE RISKS

"Successful fantasy uses this element of the unreal to help us see our own world in a new way." (artist)

— Rob O'Connor (art by Andrew Ferez)

for Creatives  |  art, artists, fantasy, writing, Rob O'Connor, Andrew Ferez

"Art is a much more mysterious process that is not fully in our control."

— Jhumpa Lahiri

for Creatives  |  Jhumpa Lahiri, magic/mystery of creating/art, art

"I write stories.  I want to know what motivates people, so I create stories to venture answers.  My sister is a sculptor; she uses a different medium, but she's still looking for something."

— Garth Stein

for Creatives  |  characters, art, writing, storytelling, Garth Stein, sculpture

"You wanna be a better writer, you'll write outside your own proscribed margins."

— Chuck Wendig (art by M.C. Escher)

for Creatives  |  creative fear, art, artists, writing, Chuck Wendig, M.C. Escher

"A work of art is a confession."

— Albert Camus

for Creatives  |  art, artist in the art, artist's message, Albert Camus

New Look for Old Landmarks

Photographer Rich McCor Gets Creative with Paper Cutouts

Wonders  |  photography, art, artists, British, travel, Rich McCor

Follow Your Curiosity

"All art is a kind of confession, more or less oblique.  All artists, if they are to survive, are forced, at last, to tell the whole story; to vomit the anguish up." (artist)

— James Baldwin (photo by Scott Fillmer)

for Creatives  |  artist integrity, creative fear, art, artists, artist in the art, the successful artist, Scott Fillmer, James Baldwin

"Do not be constrained by the formats that exist. Story does not begin and end with a physical book." (artist)

— Chuck Wendig (art by Brian Dettmer)

for Creatives  |  books, art, artists, writing, storytelling, Chuck Wendig, sculpture, Brian Dettmer, book art, books vs. ebooks, etc.

"I should like to show by my work what such an eccentric, such a nobody, has in his heart."

— Vincent van Gogh

for Creatives  |  artist integrity, art, artists, artist in the art, reaching your audience, reviews, artist's message, painting, Vincent van Gogh

"You're going to be, and probably always have been, led to avert your eyes. But turning from that path is what it means to be an artist. You need courage, and that's something I can't teach you. I can teach you that you've got to have it."

— Robert Olen Butler

for Creatives  |  artist integrity, creative fear, art, Robert Olen Butler, writing

"A work of art is an organic thing. Every detail must organically resonate with every other detail." (artist)

— Robert Olen Butler (art by Aaron Sims)

for Creatives  |  art, artists, Robert Olen Butler, Aaron Guzikowski

"I think all art comes from that: It comes from struggle and search—and, you know, I don't think it's something that should come easily."

— Jhumpa Lahiri

for Creatives  |  Jhumpa Lahiri, creating isn't easy, art

"I want you to envy me my joy. ... Say 'am I being joyful?'" (artist)

— Ray Bradbury (art by Glenda Dietrich Moore)

for Creatives  |  create for YOURSELF, art, artists, writing, Ray Bradbury, the creative life, Glenda Dietrich Moore

"Every artist in the world fights this battle every day. To go to a scary place that makes some other part of you say: What are you doing? No. Just no. No. No.  The only way to create a work of literary art is to stop that voice. Your total attention needs to be on the sensual flow of experience from the unconscious."

— Robert Olen Butler

for Creatives  |  intuitive writing & pantsing, creating isn't easy, creative fear, art, Robert Olen Butler, writing, creating in the moment

"If your writing can't touch on the whole range of emotions from joy to despair—if you are somehow protecting yourself from feeling in order to buttress your sheltered ego, you are not writing.  You are not living, either." (artist)

— David Mason (art by Jenna Rose Simon)

for Creatives  |  artist integrity, creative fear, art, artists, writing, artists must EXPERIENCE, Jenna Rose Simon, David Mason

"Cut your heart out of your chest, clutch it in your fist, and slam it down onto the paper.  That is the real meaning of write what you know, which is probably written as, write with total fucking honesty.  Take all that shit that lurks inside you, all your fears and wants and experiences, all your neuroses and psychoses and loves and loathings, all your hopes and dreams and memories, and inject 'em into your work." (artist)

— Chuck Wendig (art by Cheyenne)

for Creatives  |  creating isn't easy, artist integrity, creative fear, art, artists, write what you know, writing, Chuck Wendig, Cheyenne

"There are two of you, one who wants to write and one who doesn't. The one who wants to write has to keep fooling the one who doesn't." (artist)

— María Irene Fornés (art by Jenna Rose Simon)

for Creatives  |  creating isn't easy, art, artists, writing, KEEP CREATING, María Irene Fornés, Jenna Rose Simon

"If you're in the middle of writing and you go blank, stop it.  And your mind says 'no, that's it.'  You’re being warned.  Your subconscious is saying 'I don't like you anymore.  You're writing about things I don't give a damn for.'" (artist)

— Ray Bradbury (art by Craig Walkowicz)

for Creatives  |  art, artists, writing, writer's block, creative block, Ray Bradbury, Craig Walkowicz

"I believe that the best art tells the most truth about life."

— Julian Barnes

for Creatives  |  artist integrity, art, Julian Barnes

"Put on your business hat and your writing hat.  You have to have both these days." (artist)

— David Baldacci (photo by Jason Hightower)

for Creatives  |  photography, art, the successful artist, writing, David Baldacci, Jason Hightower

"Writing is a primal scream. It's yelling into a hole. It's the crystallization of your thoughts and fears. Writing cages your worry."

— Chuck Wendig (art by Edvard Munch)

for Creatives  |  creative fear, art, artists, writing, Chuck Wendig, Edvard Munch

"There's no 'correct path' to becoming a real artist. You might think you'll gain legitimacy by going to art school, getting published, getting signed to a record label. But it's all bullshit, and it's all in your head. You're an artist when you say you are. And you're a good artist when you make somebody else experience or feel something deep or unexpected."

— Amanda Palmer

for Creatives  |  create for YOURSELF, art, artists, the successful artist, publishing, Amanda Palmer, formal arts education

"There is sort of some type of structure even though you're flying by the seat of your pants with duct tape and spit.  I always have an idea of where I'd like the story to go, where I think I might end up, though that could change.  It depends on you exercising your full imagination.  Daydreaming a lot.  Sensing what possibilities are out there.  Not being afraid to change your mind on something." (artist)

— David Baldacci (art by Peter H. Reynolds)

for Creatives  |  intuitive writing & pantsing, art, artists, writing, creating in the moment, David Baldacci, Peter H. Reynolds

"Know that a poem is published when it's read."  (artist)

— Reginald Dwayne Betts (art & poem by Kathryn Apel)

for Creatives  |  reading, art, writing, poetry, publishing, Reginald Dwayne Betts, Kathryn Apel

The Artwork of James R. Eads

Mesmerizing, celestial, haunting, captivating...

Wonders  |  art, artists, James R. Eads, American

Follow Your Curiosity

"Advocacy has an agenda in a way that art doesn't.  But I do think they can co-exist."

— Reginald Dwayne Betts

for Creatives  |  art, artist's message, Reginald Dwayne Betts

"I exit a good short story feeling like someone's just punched me in the gut.  I'm hunched, doubled over; the story lingers in my thoughts for days."

— Nicki Porter (art by Scott Morse)

for Creatives  |  reading, art, artists, short stories, Nicki Porter, Scott Morse

"If your response to stress is, 'Well, I'm going to hunker down and put out a little word count,' you've just trained your brain to basically turn straw into gold, or water into wine." (artist)

— Chuck Wendig (art by Beverlie Manson)

for Creatives  |  magic/mystery of creating/art, art, artists, writing, word count, Chuck Wendig, Beverlie Manson

"I wish you a wrestling match with your Creative Muse that will last a lifetime.  I wish craziness and foolishness and madness upon you... Which finally means, may you be in love every day for the next 20,000 days.  And out of that love, remake a world."

— Ray Bradbury (art by Alexandre Louis Leloir)

for Creatives  |  creative process, art, artists, inspiration/the muse, Ray Bradbury, the creative life, value the art, Alexandre Louis Leloir

"I am the Commander of these words. I am the King of this story. I am the God of this place. I am a writer, and I will finish the shit that I started. Amen." (artist)

— Chuck Wendig (art by Richard Anderson)

for Creatives  |  art, artists, writing, Chuck Wendig, Richard Anderson

"'Writer's guilt': A tension between desperately wanting to record life's richness, but knowing that pulling out my paper and pen will take me away from the beauty that surrounds me."

— Judith Pulman (art by Jane Hinchliffe)

for Creatives  |  creating isn't easy, creative fear, art, artists, writing, artists must EXPERIENCE, Judith Pulman, Jane Hinchliffe

"Every time I start a book, I think, I have no idea how I did this the last time.  No idea." (artist)

— Jojo Moyes (art by Savitri)

for Creatives  |  creative fear, art, artists, novel writing, writing, Jojo Moyes, Savitri

"A writer is a world trapped in a person." (artist)

— Victor Hugo (body painting & photo by John Poppleton)

for Creatives  |  photography, art, artists, artist in the art, writing, John Poppleton, Victor Hugo, painting, body painting

"When you write, you cannot flinch. You have to go down into that deepest, darkest, most roiling, white-hot place ... whatever scared the hell out of you down there—and there's plenty—you have to go in there; down into the deepest part of it, and you can't flinch, can't walk away. That's the only way to create a work of art—even though you have plenty of defense mechanisms to keep you out of there, and those defense mechanisms are going to work against you mightily."

— Robert Olen Butler

for Creatives  |  creative process, creative fear, art, Robert Olen Butler, writing

"The specific challenge is to get it done.  And to get it done as powerfully and as beautifully as you can.  And to split the atom every time you write a sentence.  That's all.  No big deal.  Just split the atom once.  And then do it again and again.  And then find a good title.  And hope that someone gets blown away." (artist)

— Colum McCann (art by Will)

for Creatives  |  creative process, Colum McCann, creating isn't easy, art, artists, writing

"Writing allows me to control one world. When I'm not doing that, I go off and try to control parts of my own world or other people's lives." (artist)

— Julianna Baggott (art by Tom Watkins)

for Creatives  |  art, artists, writing, Julianna Baggott, the creative life, Tom Watkins

"You have to tell your mind to back the hell off. It's another place in yourself entirely where you must look to create a work of art."

— Robert Olen Butler

for Creatives  |  intuitive writing & pantsing, creative process, art, Robert Olen Butler, writing

"Fiction is not just a simulator of a social experience, it is a social experience." (artist)

— David Comer Kidd, psychologist (photo by Markus Hartel)

for Creatives  |  reading, art, artists, value the art, Markus Hartel, David Comer Kidd

"We need writers who know the difference between the production of a commodity and the practice of an art."

— Ursula K. Le Guin

for Creatives  |  art, writing, value the art, Ursula K. Le Guin

"We should all feel as if we're in over our heads when we write; that's how we know we're writing about something that really matters." (artist)

— Lee Martin (art by "lightcolorsart")

for Creatives  |  creating isn't easy, art, artists, writing, value the art, Lee Martin, lightcolorsart

"If something happens in those spontaneous moments of writing that's different than my outline, I go with the spontaneity, and change the outline to suit it.  Because the spontaneity, that's the art.  My intentions are the craft, right?  That's what I'm trying to do.  But what is being done is where the magic is."

— Garth Stein

for Creatives  |  structured writing & plotting/outlining, intuitive writing & pantsing, magic/mystery of creating/art, art, writing, Garth Stein

"Storytellers create order with imagination."

— Walt Disney

for Creatives  |  art, storytelling, Walt Disney

"Writing is an exercise in sculpture, chipping away at the rock until you find the nose."

— Stanley Elkin

for Creatives  |  creative process, art, writing, Stanley Elkin, sculpture

We Are Made of Words

artwork by "sunfairyx"

Wonders  |  art, artists, artist in the art, language, artist's message, sunfairyx, Canadian

Follow Your Curiosity

"Writing a book is a horrible, exhausting struggle, like a long bout of some painful illness.  One would never undertake such a thing if one were not driven by some demon whom one can neither resist nor understand." (artist)

— George Orwell (art by IxDoll)

for Creatives  |  creating isn't easy, magic/mystery of creating/art, art, artists, novel writing, writing, George Orwell, IxDoll

"Some new thing is always exploding in me, and it schedules me, I don't schedule it.  It says: Get to the typewriter right now and finish this." (artist)

— Ray Bradbury (art by Mario Sánchez Nevado)

for Creatives  |  art, artists, writing, KEEP CREATING, inspiration/the muse, Ray Bradbury, Mario Sánchez Nevado

"Please get out of the habit of saying that you’ve got an idea for a short story. Art does not come from ideas. Art does not come from the mind. Art comes from the place where you dream. Art comes from your unconscious; it comes from the white-hot center of you."

— Robert Olen Butler

for Creatives  |  intuitive writing & pantsing, art, Robert Olen Butler, short stories, writing, ideas

"A non-writing writer is a monster courting insanity." (artist)

— Franz Kafka (art by "isora683")

for Creatives  |  art, artists, writing, KEEP CREATING, Franz Kafka, isora683

"Art takes time.  Stories have their own heartbeat, and they will unfold at their own pace.  All you have to do is to continue to show up and do the work.  Every day."

— Laurie Halse Anderson

for Creatives  |  creative process, art, writing, KEEP CREATING, storytelling, Laurie Halse Anderson

"For art to be able to work, for art to be able to rise to its full potential, there needs to be an active collaboration between the artist and the person enjoying the art.  You need to allow your reader to have things happen as they're reading.  They need to do a little bit of the work.  If you're telling them how to feel, you're not collaborating with your reader, and it's not going to be an effective piece of writing because they're not in it.  They're being dictated to.  If you're able to give them a set of events and they do the alchemy inside themselves and experience the emotions for themselves, it becomes a more effective piece of art."

— Myla Goldberg

for Creatives  |  art, Myla Goldberg, writer-reader relationship

"I'm a big believer in form following content.  You try to find some essential truth and then figure out the best way of getting there."

— Alex Gibney

for Creatives  |  creative process, art, Alex Gibney, filmmaking

"I just held up the book and I said, 'This is my point.  The book is my point.'  It's my artistic expression I'm trying to communicate to you.  I don't know what I'm communicating, I'm making art.  I want to turn you on somehow and I hope you communicate back with me.  That's it.  That's my point.  I'm not trying to push an agenda on anybody.  That's for politics.  That's for essays.  That's for standing on a soap box."

— T.C. Boyle

for Creatives  |  art, artist in the art, writing, T.C. Boyle, writer-reader relationship

Wabi-Sabi for Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers

Wabi-Sabi for Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers

(written by Leonard Koren)

Highly Recommended!  |  books, wabi-sabi, Japanese, art, nonfiction, Leonard Koren, culture

Follow Your Curiosity

Beach becomes Art...

sand drawings by Jim Denevan

Wonders  |  nature, Jim Denevan, beach, art, artists

Follow Your Curiosity

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