Steal Like an Artist

Score: 5/5 Bookmarks

Thank you to Workman Publishing for gifting me review copies of Steal Like an Artist, Show Your Work, and Keep Going by Austin Kleon.

Steal Like an Artist, Show Your Work, and Keep Going are all essential reads for anyone creative...and I'd argue that is all of us (whether you've realized how creative you are or not). Whether you're in the flow or feeling stuck, Kleon has a wealth of bite-size and easily-digestible pieces of wisdom that we can all benefit from.

Stealing Like an Artist is all about creative curation of ideas and concepts, then remixing them to make them your own. This concept has a much broader application than just visual art, so I encourage you to think about the variety of applications you might be able to find for this advice. Kleon also talks about starting before you're ready, which is a concept I wish I'd come to much earlier in life. If you wait until you feel ready you'll never start anything, so you have to fake it till you make it and figure out the bits you need to along the way.

Show Your Work is about embracing being an amateur. There is freedom in it, and if you wait until you're a master it will be too late, or you'll never start at all. It also talks about embracing (and sharing) the process. That's where the real joy is, and it is messy, and how you will find your voice, discover what you love, and ultimately help you along your journey. Show Your Work isn't all philosophy though, it also has practical advice on building up a library of work, finding a good domain name etc.

Keep Going really wraps up this trio of books nicely by talking about how to keep being creative through the good times and the bad. It's full of wisdom and advice to help even the most seasoned artist or creative. Find your muses, know what pulls you out of a rut, surround yourself with beauty, and most importantly learn how to say no to things.