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The #1 New York Times bestseller. "A gorgeous and inspiring work of art on creation, creativity, the work of the artist. It will gladden the hearts of writers and artists everywhere, and get them working again with a new sense of meaning and direction. A stunning accomplishment.” —Anne Lamott From the legendary music producer, a master at helping people connect with the wellsprings of their creativity, comes a beautifully crafted book many years in the making that offers that same deep wisdom to all of us. “I set out to write a book about what to do to make a great work of art. Instead, it revealed itself to be a book on how to be.” —Rick Rubin Many famed music producers are known for a particular sound that has its day. Rick Rubin is known for something else: creating a space where artists of all different genres and traditions can home in on who they really are and what they really offer. He has made a practice of helping people transcend their self-imposed expectations in order to reconnect with a state of innocence from which the surprising becomes inevitable. Over the years, as he has thought deeply about where creativity comes from and where it doesn’t, he has learned that being an artist isn’t about your specific output, it’s about your relationship to the world. Creativity has a place in everyone’s life, and everyone can make that place larger. In fact, there are few more important responsibilities. The Creative Act is a beautiful and generous course of study that illuminates the path of the artist as a road we all can follow. It distills the wisdom gleaned from a lifetime’s work into a luminous reading experience that puts the power to create moments—and lifetimes—of exhilaration and transcendence within closer reach for all of us.
The #1 New York Times bestseller. "A gorgeous and inspiring work of art on creation, creativity, the work of the artist. It will gladden the hearts of writers and artists everywhere, and get them working again with a new sense of meaning and direction. A stunning accomplishment.” —Anne Lamott From the legendary music producer, a master at helping people connect with the wellsprings of their creativity, comes a beautifully crafted book many years in the making that offers that same deep wisdom to all of us. “I set out to write a book about what to do to make a great work of art. Instead, it revealed itself to be a book on how to be.” —Rick Rubin Many famed music producers are known for a particular sound that has its day. Rick Rubin is known for something else: creating a space where artists of all different genres and traditions can home in on who they really are and what they really offer. He has made a practice of helping people transcend their self-imposed expectations in order to reconnect with a state of innocence from which the surprising becomes inevitable. Over the years, as he has thought deeply about where creativity comes from and where it doesn’t, he has learned that being an artist isn’t about your specific output, it’s about your relationship to the world. Creativity has a place in everyone’s life, and everyone can make that place larger. In fact, there are few more important responsibilities. The Creative Act is a beautiful and generous course of study that illuminates the path of the artist as a road we all can follow. It distills the wisdom gleaned from a lifetime’s work into a luminous reading experience that puts the power to create moments—and lifetimes—of exhilaration and transcendence within closer reach for all of us.
Due to publisher restrictions the library cannot purchase additional copies of this title, and we apologize if there is a long waiting list. Be sure to check for other copies, because there may be other editions available.
Due to publisher restrictions the library cannot purchase additional copies of this title, and we apologize if there is a long waiting list. Be sure to check for other copies, because there may be other editions available.
Excerpts-
From the cover
Everyone Is a Creator
Those who do not engage in the traditional arts might be wary of calling themselves artists. They might perceive creativity as something extraordinary or beyond their capabilities. A calling for the special few who are born with these gifts.
Fortunately, this is not the case.
Creativity is not a rare ability. It is not difficult to access. Creativity is a fundamental aspect of being human. It's our birthright. And it's for all of us.
Creativity doesn't exclusively relate to making art. We all engage in this act on a daily basis.
To create is to bring something into existence that wasn't there before. It could be a conversation, the solution to a problem, a note to a friend, the rearrangement of furniture in a room, a new route home to avoid a traffic jam.
What you make doesn't have to be witnessed, recorded, sold, or encased in glass for it to be a work of art. Through the ordinary state of being, we're already creators in the most profound way, creating our experience of reality and composing the world we perceive.
In each moment, we are immersed in a field of undifferentiated matter from which our senses gather bits of information. The outside universe we perceive doesn't exist as such. Through a series of electrical and chemical reactions, we generate a reality internally. We create forests and oceans, warmth and cold. We read words, hear voices, and form interpretations. Then, in an instant, we produce a response. All of this in a world of our own creation.
Regardless of whether or not we're formally making art, we are all living as artists. We perceive, filter, and collect data, then curate an experience for ourselves and others based on this information set. Whether we do this consciously or unconsciously, by the mere fact of being alive, we are active participants in the ongoing process of creation.
To live as an artist is a way of being in the world. A way of perceiving. A practice of paying attention. Refining our sensitivity to tune in to the more subtle notes. Looking for what draws us in and what pushes us away. Noticing what feeling tones arise and where they lead.
Attuned choice by attuned choice, your entire life is a form of self-expression. You exist as a creative being in a creative universe. A singular work of art.
Tuning In
Think of the universe as an eternal creative unfolding.
Trees blossom.
Cells replicate.
Rivers forge new tributaries.
The world pulses with productive energy, and everything that exists on this planet is driven by that energy.
Every manifestation of this unfolding is doing its own work on behalf of the universe, each in its own way, true to its own creative impulse.
Just as trees grow flowers and fruits, humanity creates works of art. The Golden Gate Bridge, the White Album, Guernica, Hagia Sophia, the Sphinx, the space shuttle, the Autobahn, "Clair de lune," "Respect," the Roman Colosseum, the Phillips screwdriver, the iPad, Philadelphia cheesesteak.
Look around you: there are so many remarkable accomplishments to appreciate. Each of these is humanity being true to itself, as a hummingbird is true to itself by building a nest, a peach tree by bearing fruit, and a nimbus cloud by producing rain.
Every nest, every peach, every raindrop, and every great work is different. Some trees may appear to make more beautiful fruits than others, and some humans may appear to compose greater works than others. The taste and beauty are in the eye of the beholder.
How does the cloud know when to rain? How does the tree know when spring begins? How does the bird...
Reviews-
November 7, 2022 Grammy-winning music producer Rubin debuts with a meditative manual on how to boost one’s creativity. “Your entire life is a form of self-expression,” Rubin contends, applying lessons he’s learned in the recording studio to inject creativity into everyday life. Observing that listeners sometimes require time to come around to a novel new song, Rubin suggests that the “ideas that least match our expectations are the most innovative” and encourages readers to consider “radically new” ideas even if they turn one off at first. A project is only done “when you feel it is,” he posits, entreating readers to seek out the perspectives of others when nearing completion while recognizing that not all feedback will be helpful because innovative work is “likely to alienate as many people as it attracts.” Rubin stresses that readers should find what works for them, as when he urges readers to incorporate into their routines creativity-inducing habits that might include exercise, meditating, or “looking at sunlight before screenlight.” The dispatches read like ancient spiritual texts in their Zen-like wisdom, as when Rubin writes, “Accessing childlike spirit in our art and our lives is worth aspiring to.” Music fans will rejoice.
Starred review from November 1, 2022 The renowned music producer offers an apothegmatic study of creativity. "However you frame yourself as an artist, the frame is too small," writes Rubin, producer of albums across genres, from rap to metal to country. Rather than issue gnomic instructions in the manner of Brian Eno's "oblique strategies" set of cards, Rubin, always encouraging, begins by insisting that creativity "is not a rare ability. It is not difficult to access. Creativity is a fundamental aspect of being human." Though readers may feel slightly cowed next to someone like, say, Paul McCartney, whom the author interviewed at length in a recent Hulu series, Rubin has an apt reply: "You exist as a creative being in a creative universe. A singular work of art." There are ways to position oneself in this creative universe and work to best advantage. The author counsels that it's never a bad idea to read the very best books, view the very best movies, and study the very best paintings. The only shortcoming in this strategy is that "no one has the same measures of greatness." Regardless, Rubin urges that the point of art is not to create a product to sell but instead to find a transcendent path to something wonderful within ourselves. "We're not playing to win," he writes, "we're playing to play." This means getting into child mode and preparing for the possibility that one game might be less fun than another. It also involves getting into the habit of not saying no to oneself or imposing limits just because you haven't done something. "If there's a skill or piece of knowledge you need for a particular project, you can do the homework and work toward it over time," writes the author. "You can train for anything." Learn, do, have fun: terrific encouragement for anyone embarking on a creative project, no matter what it might be.
COPYRIGHT(2022) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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