Art & Fear: Observations On The Perils (and Rewards) of ARTMAKING by David Bayles & Ted Orland is for anyone who has considered making art but has been held back by insecurity, as well as anyone who has been making art for a while and needs encouragement. The questions that guided the creation of the book:
"Do artists have anything in common with each other? How do artists become artists? How do artists learn to work on their work? How can I make work that will satisfy me? Why do so many who start, quit?" (p. 114)
My favorite thing about this book is that it releases artmakers in any media--whether visual, musical, literary, etc--from comparison with giants of the past. Yes, Michelangelo was a freak genius, as was Mozart, the authors' favorite example. But does that mean we mere mortals should never sing, never paint, never write? Of course not. We should make what we want to make using our own unique perspective.
I have picked out five quotes from this book that spoke to me just to give you an impression of the treasures to be found inside Art & Fear:
1. "In a sense, habits are style. The unconsidered gesture, the repeated phrasing, the automatic selection, the characteristic reaction to subject matter and materials--these are the very things we refer to as style...Style is not an aspect of good work, it is an aspect of all work. Style is the natural consequence of habit." (p.103)
2. "If you teach, you know that you gain as much from the interchange as do your students...Teaching is part of the process of being an artist." (p.83)
3. "...each link in the arts network has a vested interest in defining its own role as fundamental and necessary." (p. 70)
4. "In making art you court the unknown, and with it the paranoia of those who fear what change might bring...Each new piece of your art enlarges our reality. The world is not yet done." (p. 68-69)
5. "The hardest part of artmaking is living your life in such a way that your work gets done, over and over--and that means, among other things, finding a host of practices that are just plain useful. A piece of art is the surface expression of a life lived within productive patterns." (p. 61)
*Bonus Quote* "When Columbus returned from the New World and proclaimed the earth was round, almost everyone else went right on believing the earth was flat. Then they died--and the next generation grew up believing the world was round. That's how people change their minds." (p. 57)
So if you would like to read a book written by artists for artists, that provides context for how art gets made and received by the world, I strongly recommend this short, sweet gem. Happy reading, and happy making!