In a scene I find both challenging and encouraging, Irving Stone depicts Vincent Van Gogh conversing passionately with his brother, Theo concerning his personal creative development. Pacing the floor wildly, breaking glasses and trashing his own hard-earned work as he rants: Vincent: “Must I give up? Am I through? It looks that way, doesn’t it? Theo: … Read More
This past summer, Lauryn Hill showed up late to a show in Chicago. Someone in the crowd made note of it during her performance. She responded that she didn’t “owe” him anything and that, instead she “did this for love.” The encounter stirred up some very interesting conversation about the relationship between an artist and … Read More
Inspiration is a wonderful place to start when making art. But we often move too quickly from being inspired to innovation—making our own thing with (hopefully) our own, unique signature. I believe that imitation is a missing link in much of our artistic development. So, don’t just be inspired by someone’s work. Make it part … Read More
If you’re like me, you loved art before you started making it. In fact, your love for art is, in large part, what probably led you to make your own. I think that ought to always be the case; that my love for art should remain close to the heart of my creative process. Which … Read More
Tennis star Andre Agassi initially learned to play the game from his dad. Legend has it that, during those early lessons, Emmanuel Agassi (who had been an Olympic athlete himself) encouraged the young Andre to worry less about the accuracy of his strokes and instead, hit the ball as hard as he could. Someday, he … Read More
“Part of the hard work of being a good artist is learning when to put something down.” This is an excerpt from “Title Pending: Things I Think About When I Make Stuff.” The book, a look at my creative process, will be available later this year. The music is by Eluvium, whose magical work accompanies … Read More
Over the next few months, I’ll be posting short, video excerpts from Title Pending, the book I’ll release later this year. Title Pending is a look at my creative process and history. It will be available later this year. The above video is a few paragraphs from the book. I hope you find these thoughts helpful in your own … Read More
Later this year, I’ll release a short book I’m calling “Title Pending: Things I Think About When I Make Stuff.” Between now and then, I’m posting previews of the book here at this blog and elsewhere, like the Art House America blog or On Pop Theology. Below is the third installation (the first is here, the second here). I don’t believe, at … Read More
Later this year, I’ll release a short book I’m calling “Title Pending: Things I Think About When I Make Stuff.” Between now and then, I’m posting previews of the book here at this blog and elsewhere, like the Art House America blog or On Pop Theology. Below is the second installation (the first is here), this one written in response … Read More
Later this year, I’ll be releasing a short book I’m calling “Title Pending: Things I Think About When I Make Stuff.” Between now and then, I’m posting previews of the book here at this blog and elsewhere, like the Art House America blog or On Pop Theology. Below is another such preview. I’d love to hear … Read More
