I am super excited today to share this conversation I had with the writer, artist Austin Kleon. What I love is that Austin’s process of creation is as important as the art he happens to be making. The vibrant potency of what he makes, whether it’s his books, drawings, writings, or talks, has everything to do with his thinking and how he creates. Today we are diving into some of the most fundamental, valuable ideas of artmaking. Whether you’re just starting out or far along the creative path, this conversation will fire you up. It did me. We dive into sustaining the juice in your artmaking, delightful missteps, and how to keep curiosity and wonder at the forefront of your art and life.

Austin is the New York Times bestselling author of a trilogy of illustrated books about creativity in the digital age: Steal Like An Artist, Show Your Work!, and Keep Going. He also has a superb blog where each week, he shares what he finds inspiring and moving. In addition, Austin speaks for organizations such as Pixar, Google, SXSW, TEDx, and The Economist. In previous lives, he worked as a librarian, a web designer, and an advertising copywriter. He lives in Austin, Texas, with his wife and sons.

Join me in this fantastic conversation with Austin. He is a student of life and art, first and foremost, a fellow explorer who so generously reports back to us all he is learning in his beautifully simple quest to creatively do a little bit better than he did yesterday. He is truly finding his way as he goes, and today we get to go too.

Listen if you are interested in...

• Learning from guest artist Austin Kleon [2:30] 
• Maintaining the momentum [4:00]
• Why you need a “Youth spy”[9:00]
• Working against limitations [15:00]
• Inviting chance and mistakes [20:00] 
• Intelligence in the body [31:00]
• Sharing in a sustainable way [37:00] 
• Executing your final product [45:00]
• Falling in love with your work [50:00]
• Don’t be your hero - be you [57:30] 
• Closing thoughts [59:00] 

Resources and Links Mentioned

• www.austinkleon.com
• Steal Like An Artist, a book by Austin Kleon
• Show Your Work! a book by Austin Kleon
• Austin’s Newsletter
• John Waters 
• Pablo Picasso
• Richard Diebenkorn
• David Hockney
• Billy Collins
• Lynda Barry
• Amanda Palmer

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