Monday, July 28, 2014

Taking Your Craft to the Next Level: Steal Like an Artist

“What good artist understands is that nothing comes from nowhere. All creative work builds on what came before.  Nothing is completely original…You are, in fact a mashup of what you choose let in your life.  You are the sum of your influences….The artist is a collector.  Not a hoarder, mind you, there’s a difference:  Hoarders collect indiscriminately, artists collect selectively.  They only collect the things they really love….Your job is to collet good ideas.  The more good ideas you collect, the more you can choose from to be influenced by.”
Austin Kelon from Steal Like an Artist

There are books I go back to over and over again, and one of those books is Austin Kleon’s book Steal Like an Artist.   This little book affirmed for me what I have been doing my entire career.  What I have been doing is picking from those people whom I love, whose work I love, whose work inspires me and moves me.  I realized that if I was to create work that made a difference I had to know what came before me and then ask how do I extend this work.  The work that inspires me is not to be copied but extended or taken to the next point on the continuum.  Whose work are you influenced by and how is their work inspiring your work?  How are you taking what they have given you and moving it along?

I follow some great documentary / street photographers and photojournalist, I am totally inspired by them but my goal is take their inspiring work to that next spot on the continuum.  Recently I began to ponder aerial photography and it’s role in my current work, Faith in Sweet Auburn: The Next Chapter.  I found that a small drone could take my work to that next spot / level.  I have access to a tool that many of mentors did not have.  I have something to add to the work I am immersed in. I purchased the DJi Phantom2  Vison +:



I have been spending the last view weeks trying to learn how to fly the Phantom so that I can use it for both aerial video and photography. I am spending time everyday learning how to fly, how to control the camera, how to compose shots from the air.  Is it hard work? YES!  It looks easy but it isn’t.  While it isn’t easy it is what I am called to next in my work.  The question for you: what are you called to next?  How are you pushing yourself to extend the work of those who have inspired you?  What are you working on that has the promise of taking you and your work to the next level?

Here is a sample video of what I am working on:


Austin Kleon’s TED Talk:







3 comments:

  1. Thanks for this, Ralph. Just what I needed for today.

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  2. I think the Phantom will be a great addition to the work you are already doing. You are, quite literally, getting every angle of the issue. I am very excited to see what you can do with this additional information and how it will add to your project. Keep going!

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  3. An artist is a collector and a copy cat ( I use this phrase with love and admiration). I'm really interested to see how the Phantom adds a new layer to your work! To answer your questions, I am called to the ideal of connections within my entire family and the topic of public verse private in relationship to the home. I am pushing myself to be more universal, to reach a greater scope within my audience. Hopefully this will prove fruitful.

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