Christmas comes early: My December pick for our Read Like an Artist book club is Lynda Barry’s What It Is, one of my all-time favorite books and one of the biggest influences on my own creative practice.
My December @literati pick: @NearSitedMonkey’s WHAT IT IShttps://t.co/cdahGIsBlR pic.twitter.com/zVGbHUHFlx
— Austin Kleon (@austinkleon) November 28, 2021
Here’s my intro:
No living artist has had more of an impact on my work than cartoonist Lynda Barry. I met her when I was 22 years old, and sometimes I swear I’ve run my whole career off of the fuel of that brief encounter. The crazy thing is that I’m not alone—I’ve met tons of people who’ve told me Lynda’s two-hour workshop changed their lives. What It Is is the book equivalent of Lynda in the classroom: a magical, thrilling, and often overwhelming experience. I mean, every single page is a full-color collage! Be warned: this book may blow your mind and change your notion of what a book can be.
