How to be an artist

If anyone should know about art, it would be American art critic Saltz, who received the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism in 2018 and has been senior art critic and columnist for New York Magazine. In this slim volume, he encourages would-be creators to realize their potential and explore the process of making art without self-censorship. Saltz presents 62 tips ranging from "Don't Be Embarrassed" to "Start Now" and "Learn To Deal with Rejection" to prime the pumps of potential artists to get to work. VERDICT An encouraging read for those cautious but eager to make art.

A noted critic advises us to dance to the music of art.Senior art critic at New York Magazine and winner of the 2018 Pulitzer Prize in Criticism, Saltz (Seeing Out Louder, 2009, etc.) became a writer only after a decadeslong battle with "demons who preached defeat." Hoping to spare others the struggle that he experienced, he offers ebullient, practical, and wise counsel to those who wonder, "How can I be an artist?" and who "take that leap of faith to rise above the cacophony of external messages and internal fears." In a slim volume profusely illustrated with works by a wide range of artists, Saltz encourages readers to think, work, and see like an artist. He urges would-be artists to hone their power of perception: "Looking hard isn't just about looking long; it's about allowing yourself to be rapt." Looking hard yields rich sources of visual interest and also illuminates "the mysteries of your taste and eye." The author urges artists to work consistently and early, "within the first two hours of the day," before "the pesky demons of daily life" exert their negative influence. Thoughtful exercises underscore his assertions. To get readers thinking about genre and convention, for example, Saltz presents illustrations of nudes by artists including Goya, Matisse, Florine Stettheimer, and Manet. "Forget the subject matter," he writes, "what is each of these paintings actually saying?" One exercise instructs readers to make a simple drawing and then remake it in an entirely different style: Egyptian, Chinese ink-drawing, cave painting, and the styles of other artists, like Keith Haring and Georgia O'Keeffe. Freely experiment with "different sizes, tools, materials, subjects, anything," he writes. "Don't resist something if you're afraid it's taking you far afield of your usual direction. That's the wild animal in you, feeding." Although much of his advice is pertinent to amateur artists, Saltz also rings in on how to navigate the art world, compose an artist's statement, deal with rejection, find a community of artists, and beat back demons. Above all, he advises, "Work, Work, Work."A succinct, passionate guide to fostering creativity. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Step One:  You Are a Total Amateur Five lessons before you even get started.   Lesson 1:  Don't Be Embarrassed   I get it. Making art can be humiliating, terrifying, leave you feeling foul, exposed, like getting naked in front of someone else for the first time.  You often reveal things about yourself that others may find appalling, weird, boring, or stupid.  People may think you're abnormal or a hack. Fine. When I work, I feel sick to my stomach with thoughts like  None of this is any good. It makes no sense.  But art doesn't have to make sense. It doesn't even need to be good.  So don't worry about being smart and let go of being "good." Lesson 2:  "Tell your own story and you will be interesting."  -- Louise Bourgeois   Amen, Louise. Don't be reined in by other people's definitions of skill or beauty or be boxed in by what is supposedly high or low. Don't stay in your own lane. Drawing within the lines is for babies; making things add up and be right is for accountants. Proficiency and dexterity are only as good as what you do with them.  But also remember that just because it's your story, that doesn't mean you're entitled to an audience.  You have to earn that. Don't try to do it with a big single project. Take baby steps. And be happy with baby steps.   Lesson 3:  Feel Free to Imitate   We all start as copycats, people who make pastiches of other people's work. Fine! Do that. However, when you do this, focus, start to feel the sense of possibility in making all these things your own -- even when the ideas, tools, and moves come from other artists. Whenever you make anything, think of yourself as entering a gigantic stadium filled with ideas, avenues, ways, means, and materials. And possibilities. Make these things yours.  This is your house now.   Lesson 4:  Art Is Not About Understanding. Or Mastery.   It is about doing and experience.   No one asks what Mozart means. Or an Indian raga or the little tripping dance of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers to "Cheek to Cheek" in  Top Hat.  Forget about making things that are understood.  I don't know what Abba means, but I love it. Imagination is your creed; sentimentality and lack of feeling your foe. All art comes from love -- love of doing something. Lesson 5:  Work, Work, Work   Sister Corita Kent said, "The only rule is work. If you work, it will lead to something. It's the people who do all of the work all the time who eventually catch onto things."   I have tried every way in the world to stop work-block or fear of working, of failure. There is only one method that works: work. And keep working.   Every artist and writer I know claims to work in their sleep. I do all the time.  Jasper Johns famously said, "One night I dreamed that I painted a large American flag, and the next morning I got up and I went out and bought the materials to begin it." How many times have you been given a whole career in your dreams and not heeded it? It doesn't matter how scared you are; everyone is scared.  Work.  Work is the only thing that takes the curse of fear away. Excerpted from How to Be an Artist by Jerry Saltz All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.