Steal Like An Artist

I have been the lucky recipient of a marvellous little book entitled 'Steal Like an Artist' by Austin Kleon, a gift from my good friend and erstwhile fellow musician/artist/blogger Peter and have been itching to share some of the brilliant ideas and advice contained within. If you're a creative type (and maybe if even not ) I think you will do well to get hold of a copy, as this is the type of 'dip in and out' reference book that could become a very firm friend. Why? Well here are the ten titles of each chapter...
1) Steal like an artist. 2) Don't wait until you know who you are to get started. 3) Write the book you want to read. 4) Use your hands. 5) Side projects and hobbies are important 6) The secret: do good work and share it with people. 7) Geography is no longer our master. 8) Be nice. (the world is a small town.) 9) Be boring. (it's the only way to get work done.) 10) Creativity is subtraction.
That surely must have your appetite whetted. This little book is full of wisdom gathered from creative people from all walks of life ie:- "Be regularand orderly in your life so that you can be violent and original in your work" - Gustave Flaubert "We don't know where we get our ideas from. What we do know is that we do not get them from our laptops." - John Cleese and this one I love; "In the digital age, don't forget to use your digits!" - Lynda Barry. You get the flavour, I'm finding it very inspiring already and I strongly recommend it to you if like me you often find yourself in a creative cul-de-sac, or worse still up a certain creek... it may just unlock your creativity. Thanks again banksyboy for introducing me to this little gem.

Spontaneous Book Purchases

We were all very busy today in the Colchester branch of the Art Cafe corporation, in fact by the time I looked up from the coffee machine to see the Tartist putting the finishing touch to yet another cream tea it was already 3.30 pm. It was then we decided to leave the others to tidy up and nip out to Waterstones just around the corner for a browse. Our browse turned into three spontaneous purchases, not exactly a spending frenzy but quite gratifying just the same.
Our first book was 'Breakfast at the Wolseley' by A.A. Gill restaurant critic with The Times, a unanimous decision and a beautiful little hardback that stylishly exemplifies why breakfast is the artist's and tartist's favourite meal of the day...to quote Mr. Gill "Breakfast is everything. The beginning, the first thing. It is the mouthfull that is the commitment to a new day, a continuing life."
The book contains sections on eggs, viennoiserie, the English breakfast, fruit and cereals, tea, coffee and hot chocolate all with accompanying recipes.
How many of us really know how to make the perfect omelette? or milk before or after in your cup of tea?



You can find The Wolseley at 160 Picadilly in London occupying a grand old showroom of the Wolseley Car Company.

Next purchase was a neat little book, 500 Cupcakes and Muffins, 500 recipes of cupcakes and muffins. We both share a disdain for those cellophane wrapped puffballs offered by the big high street cafe chains (you know who you are!) and this book has quite a few homemade alternatives. Maybe we'll feature one or two in the Artcafe this Autumn.





Last but certainly not least the artist found this title amongst all the arty farty books, Artist's Little Book of Colour by Simon Jennings. The tartist said 'don't you already know all that stuff?', well, some of it I can recall from my dim, distant past at art school, ultramarine being the blue obtained by grinding the rare and expensive lapis lazuli seems to have stuck in my memory from some or other history of art lecture. What I didn't know however is that Indian Yellow was once made by precpitating the urine of cows that had been force-fed with mango leaves!, this little book is full of this sort of facinating stuff as well as some really practical information for the artist.



...mmm we just need a bit of spare time now to try some of the recipes out and have a good read over breakfast.