Film is, and continues to be, the biggest influence on my creative life. Here are the most influential ones for 2022.
Author: Matt Shanks
Small is beautiful
Our culture values big – big money, big house, big life. So does staying small correlate to failure?
Capturing accidental learning
Some types of improvement are difficult to notice unless we spend intentional time to notice them.
Thinking in solutions
No matter how much we try, our default seems to be to articulate problems we see in the ways we think they can be solved.
The first mark
Sitting down to draw is intimidating, but sitting down to make the first mark might be helpful way to get started.
Good work cuts through
Which metrics should we be relying to understand whether the quality of our work is ‘good enough’?
The gaze
Defining one’s art style goes beyond materials. It lies at something deeper, perhaps something akin to a default way of looking.
How much is art?
What’s art worth? How much and to whom? Do the models for consumer goods map to a painting or sculpture? Or is art worth something different?
Personal exploration before publishing
In a world driven by ‘who’s it for’ thinking, maybe, sometimes, what matters most with art is that the ‘who’ is ‘you’?
Fewer decisions
Art is overwhelming enough, but we can make it easier on ourselves (and have a holiday at the same time) by imposing constraints.