How Art Can Change Your Life

Is art just a nice-to-have? Or is it deeper, far more integral...even necessary? Is there something from Beethoven to help us with that career setback? Is there something from Shakespeare to help us with our relationships? Is there something from Rembrandt to show us who we really are? It is these, amongt other questions that this book probes; through painting, music, literature, architecture, sculpture, photography and filmsspanning cultures - from Europe and Africa to India and Australia, and artistic periods - from the ancient to the modern. Leveraging his considerable experience as a research professional, Ivan Fernandez combines riveting insights from diverse artists of the past and the present, a dazzling variety of astonishing facts and powerful questions for us to reflect on. In language that is simple, elegant and imbued with passion, Ivan utters an urgent, sincere plea; urging us to draw actionable life lessons from art that can help us rise above ourselves. To make a masterpiece of our own lives. And as a guide on this epic voyage, he takes us on a fascinating journey inward; ploughing not merely the depths of artistic insight, but of the inscrutable human spirit itself! Fernandez talks about bliss - a term Ive often used. It was through writing about my practice, together with making my work, that I found my bliss. I wish Id had Fernandezs book back in those times when overwhelming doubt inhibited my practice. He brings enlightenment to thinking about art and why artists do what they do. This can help give an artist conviction, and therefore confidence, and a lay person a heightened appreciation of art. This most enjoyable read will bring great insight to artists and lay people alike. A truly inspiring read! - Archibald Prize-winning artist and art teacher, Cherry Hood Ivan Fernandezs cross-disciplinary approach - infusing insights from philosophy, literature, music and art - make this book a great read! - Sculptor, Vince Vozzo; member of the decade club (exhibited at Sculpture by the Sea ten times or more)

A candid guidebook about art-making in the midst of oppression—"a slim, necessary revelation" (Maggie Nelson, The Argonauts). Visiting the Andy Warhol Museum as a teenager, Beth Pickens realized that art was imperative for reflecting—and thus remaking—the world. As an adult, she has dedicated her life to arts nonprofits and consulting, helping marginalized artists traverse the world of MFAs, residences, and institutional funding. Writing in the aftermath of the 2016 election, Pickens reminds emerging artists that their art is more important than ever. She gives advice on fostering creativity and sustaining an innovative practice as conversations about grants, public programming, and arts funding in schools grow ever-more heated. Part political manifesto, part practical manual, this resource reminds us that art has always been a tool of resistance.

"With its gentle affirmations, inspirational quotes, fill-in-the-blank lists and tasks — write yourself a thank-you letter, describe yourself at 80, for example — The Artist’s Way proposes an egalitarian view of creativity: Everyone’s got it."—The New York Times "Morning Pages have become a household name, a shorthand for unlocking your creative potential"—Vogue Over four million copies sold! Since its first publication, The Artist's Way phenomena has inspired the genius of Elizabeth Gilbert and millions of readers to embark on a creative journey and find a deeper connection to process and purpose. Julia Cameron's novel approach guides readers in uncovering problems areas and pressure points that may be restricting their creative flow and offers techniques to free up any areas where they might be stuck, opening up opportunities for self-growth and self-discovery. The program begins with Cameron’s most vital tools for creative recovery – The Morning Pages, a daily writing ritual of three pages of stream-of-conscious, and The Artist Date, a dedicated block of time to nurture your inner artist. From there, she shares hundreds of exercises, activities, and prompts to help readers thoroughly explore each chapter. She also offers guidance on starting a “Creative Cluster” of fellow artists who will support you in your creative endeavors. A revolutionary program for personal renewal, The Artist's Way will help get you back on track, rediscover your passions, and take the steps you need to change your life.

“An original and beautiful book. It suggests that the surest way to liberate ourselves is through the power of our ideas.” —Nelson Mandela Foundation “This is not just one of those books that makes you think. It challenges you to think. It demands that you think, and to beware of all those obstacles that would stop you from trusting your instincts and finding an idea.” —Lee Clow, Global Director of Media Arts, TBWA\Chiat Day As an award-winning playwright, author, and Worldwide Creative Director of TBWA, John Hunt has witnessed again and again the power of original thinking to transform both companies and individuals. In The Art of the Idea, Hunt addresses everyone from the global boardroom to the man on the street, bridging the gap with ease. Few can argue with Hunt’s claim that it is ideas that move the world forward, and he refreshingly articulates that anyone can play: there is no hierarchy to original thinking. The Art of the Idea provides a toolbox for achieving excellence and offers a new way of defining your world. By illustrating how to create space so ideas can breathe, it provides a lifeline to those who find themselves stuck in a rut. Unassuming, original, and accessible, the publication includes insights by this leader in creative thinking, and is accompanied by 20 original paintings and collages by the internationally acclaimed South African artist Sam Nhlengethwa. The Art of the Idea grants permission to trust our instincts, endure initial ridicule, and practice thinking as a team sport. Whatever your idea is about ideas, this book will change it.

Offering helpful guidance, this illustrated handbook introduces new ways of viewing art and shows how anyone can use art to work through difficult emotions and improve their mental state. Enlightening, challenging, and informative, visual art can also be therapeutic, reducing anxiety and stress levels, and offering perspective on the challenges that we all face in our lives. How Art Can Change Your Life introduces readers to new ways of looking at a wide range of art. Through careful examination and explanation, author Susie Hodge investigates how engaging with art and drawing can help everyone feel more connected and inspired. From Frida Kahlo confronting her anxieties to Henri Matisse embracing happiness, and from Louise Bourgeois conquering fear to Auguste Rodin finding hope, this book will show how you too can use art to work through difficult emotions and improve your mental state. All art can broaden knowledge, give enjoyment, and challenge our assumptions; but it can also help soothe, calm, enlighten, and uplift the mind and spirit. Even art that leaves us uncomfortable can still help us to think differently and give us new perspective. In twelve chapters, readers will learn how art can dissipate anger, help to overcome sorrow, inspire self-reflection, as well as tackle other mental challenges. Artists have been conveying aspirations, feelings, ideas, and stories for thousands of years, and this book will help everyone “read” those messages with the goal of enriching their own emotional life through art.

A stunning and timely creative call-to-arms combining four extraordinary written pieces by Neil Gaiman illustrated with the striking four-color artwork of Chris Riddell. “The world always seems brighter when you’ve just made something that wasn’t there before.”—Neil Gaiman Drawn from Gaiman’s trove of published speeches, poems, and creative manifestos, Art Matters is an embodiment of this remarkable multi-media artist’s vision—an exploration of how reading, imagining, and creating can transform the world and our lives. Art Matters bring together four of Gaiman’s most beloved writings on creativity and artistry: “Credo,” his remarkably concise and relevant manifesto on free expression, first delivered in the wake of the Charlie Hebdo shootings “Make Good Art,” his famous 2012 commencement address delivered at the Philadelphia University of the Arts “Making a Chair,” a poem about the joys of creating something, even when words won’t come “On Libraries,” an impassioned argument for libraries that illuminates their importance to our future and celebrates how they foster readers and daydreamers Featuring original illustrations by Gaiman’s longtime illustrator, Chris Riddell, Art Matters is a stirring testament to the freedom of ideas that inspires us to make art in the face of adversity, and dares us to choose to be bold.

What terms do we use to describe and evaluate art, and how do we judge if art is good, and if it is for the social good? In How Art Can Be Thought Allan deSouza investigates such questions and the popular terminology through which art is discussed, valued, and taught. Adapting art viewing to contemporary demands within a rapidly changing world, deSouza outlines how art functions as politicized culture within a global industry. In addition to offering new pedagogical strategies for MFA programs and the training of artists, he provides an extensive analytical glossary of some of the most common terms used to discuss art while focusing on their current and changing usage. He also shows how these terms may be crafted to new artistic and social practices, particularly in what it means to decolonize the places of display and learning. DeSouza's work will be invaluable to the casual gallery visitor and the arts professional alike, to all those who regularly look at, think about, and make art—especially art students and faculty, artists, art critics, and curators.