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.