“Don’t Make Art, Just Make Something” by Miranda Aisling

The problem with capital A, museum-worthy Art is that very few people think they can make it.  And who can blame them?  Because if they’ve never tried before, chances are they won’t.

Which is why I tell people that they shouldn’t make art, they should just make something.  Because anyone can make something.

Don’t Make Art, Just Make Something is a short non-fiction book that delves into the thinking behind this important lesson.  It reframes art from a field for the talented few to an arena that everyone can play in.  By doing this, the book also tackles the process of getting started because while starting an Art piece can be paralyzing, starting something can be as easy as opening a book.

How do I know this works?  Because this book is my something.  In fact, it’s the fifth book I’ve written, the first four were just more something than they were book.  But over time, through endless hours of unglamorous work, after four manuscripts that sit collecting dust on my shelves, I created something that I truly do consider art.

The real secret is that if you set out to make art, you’ll never make anything.  It’s only when you set out to make something, which turns into something else, and then something else, that you finally step back and realized you’ve been making Art all along.