Steal Like An Artist

Steal Like An Artist is a great book and like I said in previous blog posts it's going to be one I'm going to keep on the shelf. I actually have already giving it to my son to read. Everything from creating the book you want to read to playing the music you want to hear this book is really inspirational. Austin talks about using your hands, both in the digital and analog worlds. He also talks about how side projects and hobbies are important. They keep the creative juices flowing. Austin has also shown me throughtout the book how to really dive into something and not only learn the stuff on the surface but to go deeper and learn more than you ever thought was possible. The main feeling of the book is that it is a small world, you need to be nice and of course be boring.

Like the book Steal Like An Artist, Hugh MacLeod's book Ignore Everyone is a great little book about creativity. Hugh talks about how he started in the bustle of New York city and has ended up in a small town in Texas. Hugh is a well known cartoonist that got his start by doodling on the back of business cards in bars. He Says that "Doing something seriously creative is one of the most amazing experiences one can have in this or in any lifetime." Hugh also talks about how you have to put in the hours. Skill and natural talent matters less and less as you work more and more. In the long run, the people who work the hardest in the long run win. There are a lot of comparable ideas in both books. Since the book came out before Steal Like An Artist, I see in chapter nine that Austin completely takes Hugh's thoughts and runs with them. In fact I am now surprised that Austin doesn't directly quote Hugh in his book. There are more similarities between the books as well. "Work hard. Keep at it. Live simply and quietly. Remain humble. Stay positive. Create your own luck. Be nice. Be polite." is something that Hugh said. You can see the inspiration that Austin got from this book. "The sovereignty you have over your work will inspire far more people than the actual content ever will." this is one of my favorite quotes from Hugh MacLeod.

Chapter Ten

The last chapter in Austin Kleon's book Steal Like An Artist is about constraints and knowing what to leave out. Really if you think about it, if you don't give yourself any constraints the idea that you can do anything is really terrifying. Limitations mean freedom and the right limitations can lead to some of your best work. Working within parameters as a good idea when it comes to creativity. Austin says it the best "In the end, creativity isn't just the things we choose to put in, it's the things we choose to leave out."

I really believe that limiting yourself, or making constraints in your projects helps to focus and get a better end result. Jack White is absolutely right when he says, "Telling yourself you have all the time in the world, all the money in the world, all the colors in the palette, anything you want-that just kills creativity."  Can you image how hard it would be to create something without limits? 

Recently I had a past classmate of mine come to me and ask if I knew anyone that could do a caricature of her Dad. I immediately thought she might be asking me and was terrified because I do not have any kind of experience in this style of art. This so happened to happen at the same time I knew this week blog post was coming up. I sent her a sketch and for my project I will be giving it a try. I am going to work in strictly digital because I feel that I can produce something rather quickly in this medium. I also stated that I will be doing the art in grey scale, colorizing this would probably put me way over the time budget that I am thinking of. Below is my initial sketch. 

Chapter Nine

Steal Like An Artist will be a book that I am going to keep for my personal collection. I can see myself reading this book over and over again to get that little extra kick in the pants I might need from time to time.
Chapter nine is about being boring because it is the only way to get your work done. Austin starts this chapter talking about how he is a pretty boring guy. He states that if you so call burn the candle at both ends too long your bound to wind up less creative or even dead. He says "It take a lot of energy to be creative. You don't have that energy if you waste it on other stuff.
Another good point that Austin makes in this chapter is to stay out of debt. You have to learn about money as soon as you can. The art of holding on to your money is all about saying no to consumer culture. His Grandfather used to tell his dad, "Son, it's not the money you make, it's the money you hold on to."
My favorite part of this chapter has to be the part about keeping you day job. It is something that I have come to realize for quite some time now. It is true that your day job gives you money, a connection to the world and a routine. My job has even been known to be a inspiration for me every so often. It has taught me many valuable things over time.
Lastly Austin talks about getting yourself a calendar and a logbook. This is something that I have struggled with over the years, but when I do religiously keep a calendar I notice that benefits. It's just sticking to that routine that has been a problem. Now with the logbook, that is something that I have never really done before. As suggested I will attempt a logbook this week and post my entries on Saturday here. Come back and give it a look. Hopefully you all will find some good in keeping a logbook.
A calendar helps you plan work, gives you concrete goals, and keeps you on track. Keeping the chain going like it says in the book is a good way to create momentum when it comes to being creative.
With a logbook the small everyday details can help you remember the bigger details. This one is the activity that I am looking forward to the most. I really like how Austin has his laid out in his book, it seems more fun than a tedious everyday task.

Chapter Eight

Chapter eight has probably been one of my favorite chapters so far in Austin Kleon's book Steal Like a Artist. Austin talks first about how to handling people on the internet. He says the best way to vanquish your enemies is to ignore them, and the best way to make friends is to say nice things about them. I really agree with Austin on this topic. In fact I have grown tired of all the negativity on the internet. It seems that people feel that since they can hide behind a screen that they can be downright vulgar on the internet. 

Austin also talks about surrounding yourself with the people that are way smarter than you and better than you, the people who are doing the really interesting work. My favorite part of this chapter is when he is quoting Harold Ramis. "Find the the most talented person in the room, and if it's not you, go and stand next to him. Hang out with him, Try to be helpful." Austin also adds that if that person that you find in the room to be the most talented, you need to find another room. I feel having a list of the "smart people" completely works in your favor in the creativity department. Seeing what they do and how they do it is quite inspiring. I follow a artist by the name of Jasper St Aubyn West. He superimposes his drawings over photographs that he takes. I will include a few of my favorites in this post. Another person I have followed on Instagram is Chip Kidd. I started following him because of our shared love of the caped crusader Batman. In following Chip Kidd I also started following Stefan Sagmeister.

The next part of the chapter kinda goes back to the first part. You're going to see stupid stuff out there and you're going to feel like you need to correct it. Well, keep your mouth shut and use that energy in your own work. 

The last part of the chapter talks about how you should write fan mail to your heroes. Austin recommends public fan letters. Write a blog post about someone's work that you admire. Make something and dedicate it to your heroes. Answer a question they've asked, solve a problem for them, or improve on their work and share it online. Maybe your hero will see your work, maybe they won't. Maybe they will respond to you, maybe not. The important thing is that you show your appreciation without expecting anything in return.

These are the pieces from Jasper that I was talking about. The last one is my first attempt in his style.

Chapter 7

Austin Kleon talks about how his peers live everywhere because he knows them from the Internet. This chapter is about how geography is no longer our master. Where you used to rely on the people in your community for inspiration and art-related fellowship. Now you have the Internet and social media to connect to those peers. Austin also talks about how if you're not into the world you live in, you can build your own world around you. Start by surrounding yourself with books and objects that you love.

This is my little work corner where I have things that I love mounted on the walls and in shelves.

Another thing that Austin talks about in chapter seven is the need to disconnect from the electronics, this way you can't be alone or captive. He suggests to work times in your day where you can spend it in a little self-imposed solitude and temporary captivity.

The last thing that Austin mentions is not to let your brain get too comfortable. When you spend too much time in your own world your brain gets too comfortable and you need to make it uncomfortable so it will work harder for you. Spend time with interesting people that might do something different from you. You have to find a place that feeds you – creatively, socially, spiritually, and literally.

Austin's thoughts about letting your brain get too comfortable actually makes a lot of sense. You don't want to get into a rut doing the same things everyday making your creative side shut down. I suggest that you try to do things outside of your comfort zone to keep your brain working hard. Go to an art show or a concert if that is not your normal thing. Try something new when you are working on a project, whether it's the way you research or come up with concepts. Not sure what those things might be? Search the Internet on how others accomplish the same tasks and you might be surprised at what you might find that would be inspiring.

I really enjoy Austin's thoughts about being around interesting people, and not necessarily people who do what you do. I believe that it is really important and it only can add to your creativity. One of the things that I feel I would like to focus on is to actually get to know more creatives than I presently do. I think going to things like CUDO happy hours or becoming involved in some sort of group would be a good start at getting to know people that share your same interests.

The following are from my research and inspiration for the next project. I was looking for something that showed a helping hand, or some kind of support within the image. I would like to hear your thoughts on my findings.

My last thoughts on this weeks blog is the Aaron Draplin book that I am currently reading. It is a coming of age story about Aaron's life and how he grew up. Aaron talks about the many challenges that he faced and how when he was old enough he moved across country with his friends to make a fresh start. It really reminded me a lot about how Austin talks about in his book that sometimes you might need to set up a new home and leave where you are now and then.

https://jaredpetersonart.wixsite.com/website

The Secret:

Do good work and share it with people.

Chapter seven in Austin Kleon's book Steal Like an Artist is all about the not so secret formula of getting your work out there for people to see. He starts talking about how when your new to this whole thing it might not be such a bad idea that people aren't paying attention to you. You want to receive a lot of attention only after you're doing really good work. There is no pressure when you're unknown, you can do what you want and there is something beautiful about that. Austin explains that if there was a secret formula for becoming well known he would share it with everyone. Since there isn't he shares a not so secret formula. It's to do good work and share it with people. Basically he talks about how easy it is now to get your work on the internet, so do it.

When you think about just putting yourself online because you feel that you have something to say, it is just actually the beginning. You will find out that when you put yourself online you actually might find something to say. The internet is full of creatives with thousands upon thousands of ideas. When you start to wonder at something that no one else is wondering it can breed into multiple ideas. The more open you are with sharing your thoughts, the closer people will feel to your work.

Having a public presence will keep you on your toes because you are only as good as your last post. Austin talks about this being a kick in the pants, because it keeps you on your toes. He says that a lot of artist worry about being online will cause them to make less work. What Austin is saying though is that he has found that it is a kick in the pants, and you have to keep up with what you're going to post next.

Please take the time to check out my other site. It is mainly under construction, but I will be adding things to it often to get it where I envision it to be. You can follow the link below.

www.jaredpetersonart.com

Side Projects and Hobbies are Important

In Austin Kleon's book Steal Like An Artist, Austin talks about productive procrastination. He is basically saying when you are procrastinating from the main job that you're supposed to be doing, those procrastinations might turn into the thing you should be really doing. He says that the stuff that is just the play stuff is actually the good stuff. If you have a lot of projects going at once you can bounce back  a forth between them to keep the creative juices fresh. Practice productive procrastination is what he explains. He also talks about how he gets some of his best ideas when he is doing nothing and actually bored. Austin say if you're out of ideas, wash the dishes. Rake a really long walk. Stare at a spot on the wall for as long as you can. It's basically a good way to focus your mind.

When I tend to do nothing is when my minds starts to race. At first I thought it was great, but now I have realized I can't get all of my thoughts down or into something that I can recall later. This is kind of frustrating so I now try and keep busy in my down time. Keeping my hands busy is a good way for me to come up with creative thoughts. Whether if its playing with a puzzle or clicking the remote buttons, this always seems to help.

One of my most recent hobbies is sports magnets for the fridge. Below are an assortment of some of the NFL magnets I have done. I have also created baseball and hockey busts. I started out doing them thinking I could sell them and make some money off things I really enjoy. It makes me really happy because I throughly enjoy watching sports in my down time, especially football.

Project 3 is a menu design project for a local restaurant. The following images are one that I selected for my research. My peers and I really enjoyed the illustrative aspects of a few of the menus that I found. The one design that stayed with me the most is the second from the top. This is menu has a really sophisticated look to it. You know when you go to this restaurant you are going to be spending some money. At first the leaf insert caught my attention, but them I was really impressed with the clean overall look of this menu design. This is the one that I will try to draw inspiration from.

In the book "Steal Like An Artist", Austin Kleon talks about how computers have robbed us of the feeling that we're actually making things. He quotes a few artist on how they feel the computer has somewhat set us back from being creative. Stanley Donwood says "You never really get to touch anything that you're doing unless you print it out." Austin also says to just watch someone at a computer, they're so still, so immobile. He says that we need to move, to feel like we're making something with our bodies, not just our heads.
Austin finishes the chapter talking about bringing the analog tools back into his creative process. He comments on how he has two workspaces in his office, one that is analog and one that is digital. Austin talks about how when cartoonist Tom Gauld says he stays away from the computer until he's almost done all of the thinking, because once the computer is involved, "things are on an inevitable path to being finished. Whereas in my sketchbook the possibilities are endless."
Kleon suggests that you try the split office space if you have the room. The following are pictures from my analog desk that is across the room from my digital space. In the pictures are the countless sketches that I did for a wordmark project. The last picture is the finished product that appeared in last years student show.

I felt working in both analog and digital with this project was really important. I kept going through the analog-to-digital loop that was mentioned in the book. It really seemed to help me when I was getting stuck in one method. I would just switch back and fourth until it felt just right. I definitely came to more of a roadblock when I was working digitally. There were too many opportunities to start over or get frustrated when I couldn't relay what was in my head to screen.

Write the book you want to read.

Austin Kleon has some really interesting points of view in chapter three of his book, Steal Like An Artist. He talks about making the work or art that you want to either see, hear or feel. He says "Go make stuff" Draw the art you want to see, start the business you want to run, play the music you want to hear, write the book you want to read, or build the products that you want to use–do the work you want to see done. It really make a lot of sense, why not use the creative juices that you were inspired by to create something of your own. I will try and run with this mindset in my next projects or in whatever I happen to be doing soon.

Man, what would my life be like if I would rewrite it? That's a big question! That is a hard one to think about. If I were to rewrite my story, I think it would start with becoming what I intend to be at an earlier age. Like I said before, I decided what I wanted to be when I grew up pretty late in the game. Hopefully I have a lot of game left in me, but I would have started this a whole lot earlier if I were to rewrite this part of my life. The next few years of my story would have to entail making a comfortable enough living that I can spend as much time with my family as possible. They say that life goes by fast and now seeing I have a fifteen and ten year old already I kinda know what they mean. The next few years of this story would have a lot of family time in it.

If all of my favorite makers got together and collaborated with me at the helm, we would create a new kind of digital comic. When Christopher Nolan wrote and directed the Batman Dark Knight trilogy, it was everything that I always wanted in a Batman story. When the DVD came out I purchased it immediately so I could watch it over and over again. The added bonus was the extras within this DVD. It included an interactive comic with movement and sounds. I thought it was great! From the sound of rain hitting the rooftops to bullets flying through the air I knew that this was something that should be explored further. I was never a huge comic book fan growing up, I guess the main reason was that my parents only rarely bought me any so I never got into them at an early age. Now that I have two boys, I find myself looking at their books and novels. Through these books I have found some great inspiration when it comes to style. The pencil and ink work is done by an American comic book artist Greg Capullo. He is a favorite of my son's so I see a lot of his work and I have gained some inspiration from him. The last image is from a band Nine Inch Nails. This album is called Year Zero. This album is a concept album that presents a dystopian vision of the year 2022 here in the United States. From the moment I heard this album I could see the story unfolding in my head. I believe that if these three and I would collaborate we would come up with a new type of digital comic book set in the future that would also usher in the future of comic books themselves. 

Steal like an artist

In Austin Kleon’s book Steal Like An Artist he talks about faking it until you make it, start copying your heroes and emulating them. He shares a lot of good ideas and thoughts on how you can start creating things by at first copying your heroes and then moving to emulating them and learning from them.
On page 36 Austin

This last one is one I did of the Smoky Mountains in what I feel like is a Draplin style.

Hugh MacLeod is a cartoonist that has a blog named Gaping Void. He also has a book about creativity.  This book "Ignore Everybody" is a book I intend to give a read. It seems like a great motivational read and was recommended by Austin Kleon the author of "Steal Like A Artist". It additionally seems

 like a great book to have in your unread library. Something to pick up for a inspirational read. 

I think it's a great idea to have books like these two. They both seem to be perfect for a little

 pick me up when needed. 

An unread library is really something to think about when you are starting out to define yourself. When you go to the library to research something, it's not the book you start out with always. Sometimes that book will lead you to another, and then another.  Austin says " Don't worry about doing research. Just search". I think that he has a good idea here. Sometimes when you get too involved in your research you are missing out on the big picture. Grabbing more books that you might not intend on reading right away might hold the key to what you were searching in the first place. Or that book might be around for future questions that you might have on a different subject. 

Scott McCloud's book " Understanding comics" is another suggested book by Austin. It is actually a book I have checked out from the Champaign Public Library years ago, and is something I wish I owned. I remember it being really light and informative. Something I am definitely going back to try and find again so I can give a brief review on. It would be a recommendation of mine.

You can find my project two research here http://gds.parkland.edu/student/fall18/gds122/jpeterson/

Continuing with my thoughts on Austin Kleon's book "Steal Like an Artist", I strongly believe that Austin is right when he talks about being a mashup of what you choose to let in your life. I am totally a sum of the influences that I have let into my life to inspire me. My first influence is my wife. When we were dating I was enamored by her drive and independence. Although it took me way too long to let that inspiration sink in for myself, I strive to be more like her. Another influence is Aaron Draplin. I am currently reading his book "Draplin Design Co. Pretty Much Everything." He has ten pages in his book from people who adore him and why he is the man he is today. They all say around the same things. How hard he worked to get where he is and how hard he still works to this day. He really does have some interesting outlooks on life and I admire him for that.

I am starting to get satisfied with the start of the sum of my influences. I did say the start though, I am not sure that I will ever be completely satisfied with a particular sum of influences. I feel to keep growing in the design field you should keep building on these influences on a daily basis. Ever since I have gone back to school, I have gotten better at the whole research process when working on a project. With the strides I have made during this process it has really shown me what there is out there to inspire us all daily. It is pretty amazing and is something that I am going to keep getting better at to broaden my influences.

Like us all Aaron Draplin has some heroes in his life. In his book he first talks about his cousin Tom Draplin. He explains how Tom always had the coolest sketch books and colored pencils. Even though Tom is an illustrator he has always influenced Aaron. Here are two of his illustrations, the second one being a storyboard in which he does a lot of nowadays.

Another influence is a man by the name of Charles S. Anderson. Aaron is happy to call him a friend and a mentor. You might recognize some of his work.

The last influences of Aaron's that I am going to talk about is actually a type foundry and design studio created by Andy Cruz and Rich Roat. House Industries is the creator of the look of Nickelodeon's TV Land, Ann Taylors clothing tag, and the ever popular sugary breakfast cereal Lucky Charms. Aaron talks in his book on how he showed up at their door and begged them to sell him some of their fonts. Not only did they load him up with "so much cool shit" They made a lifetime fan with their hospitality. Here is a sample of some of their fonts.

I am totally becoming a fan of the book "Steal Like An Artist" by Austin Kleon. I have just started reading this book and it makes a lot of sense. I will immediately start implementing some of Austin's ideas. Just reading the table of contents has me wanting to read the whole thing in just one sitting.

Stealing like an artist shows me that as long as you're not completely ripping someone of word for word, or stroke by stroke anything is fair game. I really enjoyed the quote from French writer Andre Gide, "Everything that needs to be said has already been said. But, since no one was listening, everything must be said again." This just goes to show you that you're not going to reinvent the wheel, so as long as you make your work your own it's not stealing other peoples ideas.

I really do believe that originality is valued in art. Researching and communicating with peers has always helped me in becoming more original. Just seeing what inspires others and ideas they have also gives me a sense of original thought.

I just learned about a swipe file. I don't currently have a official one as I write this but I will be working on starting to organize my internet links and other ideas in some kind of system. Too many times have I found something on the internet and when I tried to go back to find it, I have no luck. It's just gone. Hopefully with a system in place I don't have to worry about that anymore.

I feel an organized collection is a better collection. As of right now if I were to go and try to find something that I have collected non digitally it might take me some time. The following picture shows my cubes that I have stuffed with inspiration.

I have shared an image of Aaron Draplin's logo designs. Last year in Graphic Art History I was introduced to him. I really enjoy his work and sense of humor. This will be a designer that I will try to learn more about this semester.

Hello There!

Hi welcome to my blog.

My name is Jared Peterson and I am a 43 year old that has finally figured out what he should do when he grows up. This is my second stint at Parkland College, I first majored in Mass Communications in the Visual Arts. My first degree landed me a lot of restaurant jobs and now I have finally decided to return to get my associates in Graphic Art.

I feel that my creative process is pretty standard. The process I use when I am doing a project for school  is basically the same each time. I get to know as much as I can about the subject, I feel this gets me a good start and I am able to produce a ground level idea from it. I always try to recall something that I have seen recently while being out and about. I find this method works the best for me. If I don't have something jotted down I can look to my phone for inspiration. I take a lot of photos of things that spark my interest and end up inspiring me. If none of these methods seem to be working I turn to a few apps that I have on my phone. Deviant Art and Tumblr are always a good way to see what my peers are doing. Pinterest has been a favorite in the past but seems to be just recycling the same things over and over lately. If I do acquire some sort of block, then sleeping on it usually helps.

Inspiration is all around. Seriously, everywhere you go there is someone that is or has been creative. This is what drives me to do what I want to do. I would love to be someone else's inspiration someday.

Creative people are extremely important to society. It is rather scary to think what this world might be like without artist, musicians, inventors, and just people that think outside of the box. Creativity is really important to each culture in it's own right. Could you imagine a world without creatives?

I have recently become to admire the comic book artist Jim Lee. He recently posted on his social media account all the rejection letters he received while trying to get into the business. Perseverance was the main thought behind these posts. If he was to just give up on his dream, we would not have this amazing artist out there to inspire. With him sharing his story of perseverance it made me admire him even more.

As I write this blog post Cobra is not giving me the course calendar for some reason. This is probably why you don't want to wait until the night of the deadline to share your thoughts. I will say that I am looking forward to the catalog project. I feel it will be good to collaborate with my fellow peers in putting something together like that. I also feel that it will be the most challenging and will require the most time in research and the overall project. As far as starting the research, yesterday was probably a good time. In all seriousness though, I don't think you could ever know too much about a project you are working on.

Here is to a successful semester!

Minor League Baseball Fun!

Recently I have gotten interested in the minor league baseball logo design look. For many years now the minor league teams of major league baseball have been having fun with their team names and logos. I have always thought it would be fun to design a logo for a new team so I started making up my own. Some of the teams that I have created are the Mesa Mules, SanMateo Miners, Watsonville Whales, and a sketch that I am including for the Corpus Christie Cowpokes.

With the Cowpokes design I wanted to integrate different items a cowboy might use. 

I also wanted to give the feeling of depth with the big letter c. Hopefully giving it some movement while it is trying to break out of being roped. This is just the initial sketch, so color scheme and a nice font are what is needed to get the logo closer to the finished look.