What do you think?
Rate this book
The Art Spirit
A classic work of advice, criticism, and inspiration for aspiring artists and lovers of art "Art when really understood is the province of every human being." So begins The Art Spirit, the collected words, teachings, and wisdom of innovative artist and beloved teacher Robert Henri. Henri, who painted in the Realist style and was a founding member of the Ashcan School, was known for his belief in interactive nature of creativity and inspiration, and the enduring power of art. Since its first publication in 1923, The Art Spirit, has been a source of inspiration for artists and creatives from David Lynch to George Bellows. Filled with valuable technical advice as well as wisdom about the place of art and the artist in American society, this classic work continues to be a must-read for anyone interested in the power of creation and the beauty of art.
290 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 30, 1929
1038 people are currently reading
37059 people want to read
About the author
Robert Henri
37 books109 followersRobert Henri was an American painter and teacher. He was a leading figure of the Ashcan School in art.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 311 reviews
April 23, 2013
This photo says it better than I ever could.
January 14, 2022
Loved it! Here's what I wrote in my blog about it...
There are so many bits of wisdom in Robert Henri's The Art Spirit that it's hard to know what to share. (I have "wow" and "cool" and "neat" written in red letters in the margins of just about every page...) But perhaps this is the most important thing--Robert Henri talks about creating art as the one "true happiness" in life. "A man must become expressive before he can be happy," he writes (the italics are mine.) Henri stresses, again and again, that we are all artists, or at least, we all have that capacity. The urge to create is innate. We all have the capacity to experience, to see, to feel, to care. Making art is about caring, he says.
It seems that we get hung about art and "who" is an artist. (Maybe this started in high school, when we were either assigned to the "science track" or the "art track." Some silly bureaucratic proceduralism occurred, and we were subsequently scarred for life.) It doesn't have to be painting, sculpture, or music--anything can be a form of art if we are expressing something that's unique and meaningful to us. There are many forms of expression in life. For me, teaching is a form of expression. It's simply about being open to the world, noticing what we love, and expressing that love in whatever form best suits us. The technique is secondary to the expression.
Henri defines artistic expression broadly, as a "giving back" to the world. Letting something speak to you, and sharing your expression of that thing with others. It's not about the product, it's about being in that space of open sensitivity that makes art inevitable. It's like we have to create because we're so moved by whatever we've seen. Have you noticed that? When you're open to the world and beauty is streaming in all around you, the poem, the drawing, the music, happen spontaneously? We're moved by the wonder of it all.
I also have two additional blog posts about this book that I won't copy over here. If you're interested, here they are:
Robert Henri's Thoughts on Painting a Child
and
Robert Henri and the Art Spirit
There are so many bits of wisdom in Robert Henri's The Art Spirit that it's hard to know what to share. (I have "wow" and "cool" and "neat" written in red letters in the margins of just about every page...) But perhaps this is the most important thing--Robert Henri talks about creating art as the one "true happiness" in life. "A man must become expressive before he can be happy," he writes (the italics are mine.) Henri stresses, again and again, that we are all artists, or at least, we all have that capacity. The urge to create is innate. We all have the capacity to experience, to see, to feel, to care. Making art is about caring, he says.
It seems that we get hung about art and "who" is an artist. (Maybe this started in high school, when we were either assigned to the "science track" or the "art track." Some silly bureaucratic proceduralism occurred, and we were subsequently scarred for life.) It doesn't have to be painting, sculpture, or music--anything can be a form of art if we are expressing something that's unique and meaningful to us. There are many forms of expression in life. For me, teaching is a form of expression. It's simply about being open to the world, noticing what we love, and expressing that love in whatever form best suits us. The technique is secondary to the expression.
Henri defines artistic expression broadly, as a "giving back" to the world. Letting something speak to you, and sharing your expression of that thing with others. It's not about the product, it's about being in that space of open sensitivity that makes art inevitable. It's like we have to create because we're so moved by whatever we've seen. Have you noticed that? When you're open to the world and beauty is streaming in all around you, the poem, the drawing, the music, happen spontaneously? We're moved by the wonder of it all.
I also have two additional blog posts about this book that I won't copy over here. If you're interested, here they are:
Robert Henri's Thoughts on Painting a Child
and
Robert Henri and the Art Spirit
January 13, 2009
I can't do justice to this book, so won't try. Only thing I will say is that my copy is held together by rubber-bands.
March 26, 2012
I did not tear through this book, but savored it. Slowly, over a few weeks. 10-20 pages at a time.
I think any artist or creative person at any stage of their development can benefit from Henri, but I recommend this most for any aspiring, emerging or self-taught artist out there who could use a light in the dark. What is our personal style and where does it come from? What is the appropriate balance of technique versus 'spirit', for lack of a better term? How can we best unlock the expression within? I've wrestled with these and similar questions often on my own path and finding Henri was like falling into someone's arms after a very grueling struggle. He pats you on the back and whispers "Shh shhh, it's going to be okay," and you think, yes. It will be.
I think any artist or creative person at any stage of their development can benefit from Henri, but I recommend this most for any aspiring, emerging or self-taught artist out there who could use a light in the dark. What is our personal style and where does it come from? What is the appropriate balance of technique versus 'spirit', for lack of a better term? How can we best unlock the expression within? I've wrestled with these and similar questions often on my own path and finding Henri was like falling into someone's arms after a very grueling struggle. He pats you on the back and whispers "Shh shhh, it's going to be okay," and you think, yes. It will be.
January 28, 2008
Here's a quote from The Art Spirit: I once met a man who told me that I always had an exaggerated idea of things. He said, "Look at me, I am never excited." I looked at him and he was not exciting. For once I did not over-appreciate."
Book includes philosophy of art and appreciation, concrete how-to instructions, and comments of famous artists and works of art.
Book includes philosophy of art and appreciation, concrete how-to instructions, and comments of famous artists and works of art.
February 25, 2009
Writers should never forget that fiction is an art form. Henri speaks to the artist inside us all.
June 15, 2015
I did a lot of drawing as a child and a young adult—portraits of children mostly. As I aged, my passion for art and the lives of artists increased, yet I kept dropping out of studio art classes as quickly as I enrolled. This book helped me understand why: Though restless to get started, I had nothing to say that compelled expression, and consequently felt on shaky ground. As Henri points out, “We are not here to do what already has been done…An interest in the subject, something you want to say definitely about the subject; this is the first condition of a portrait… the work is done when that special thing has been said.” Caricaturists seem to understand this innately; they hone in on a feature or gesture of their subject that gives voice to the character and temperament of its owner, as the artist sees it. Just as everything is subordinate to the idea you, as an artist, need to express, so should “the mass of the head… be considered as principle to any feature of the head… When expressing the feature, consider well its part in relation to the idea you have to express.” Economy and gesture are other principles: “It will not be so much a question of painting that nose as it will be painting the expression of that nose.” (Alice Neel comes to mind.) Some of the most intriguing passages in this book concern solidity: “… the employment of bulk as a factor of expression… The weight and density of the sea. The bulk and hard resistance of rock… A blouse with a body in it. A head with a back to it.” Henri tells us how hard solidity is to achieve: “We are very appreciative of the solid. Yet most paintings and most drawing produce the impression of flatness. Distances across the canvas are generally very nearly correct, but distance in, following the line of vision, hardly exists.” Distance in—what a beautiful concept, especially when applied to portraiture. It explains why I found Jamie Wyeth’s graphite drawing of Ted Kennedy (on view at a recent exhibit at the Brandywine River Museum in PA) so magnificent: “It’s a question of the life within.”
January 3, 2012
The title of the book is quite accurate. "The Art Spirit" deals with the inner drive of the artist and the pitfalls of art making.
Probably the most quotable art book I've ever read, almost every page has some bumper sticker wisdom to dispense, all of it quite remarkable. It can get quite recitative in parts and it is very much a product of it's time in it's ambition. But, as a figurative artist, I find every art student should read it at least once.
The main idea of the book isn't groundbreaking but it bears repeating: art is hard work that must be done by those who can't help it. Once you believe art is your thing, there are states of mind conducive to genius and others that strive for imitation and avoidance. Sacrifice will be necessary, social and economic success might ellude one and an indepence of thought will be essential.
Probably the most quotable art book I've ever read, almost every page has some bumper sticker wisdom to dispense, all of it quite remarkable. It can get quite recitative in parts and it is very much a product of it's time in it's ambition. But, as a figurative artist, I find every art student should read it at least once.
The main idea of the book isn't groundbreaking but it bears repeating: art is hard work that must be done by those who can't help it. Once you believe art is your thing, there are states of mind conducive to genius and others that strive for imitation and avoidance. Sacrifice will be necessary, social and economic success might ellude one and an indepence of thought will be essential.
December 31, 2012
This book has changed me as an artist and as a human being. It really opened my mind to what art really is and how to be in that mysterious spiritual space that makes ART inevitable. It's not just for artists though! It talks a lot about spirituality and human beings in general and how every human being can be an artist- it's not always expressed through the painting, drawing, the works. It is a way of life, a way of knowing yourself as an individual, and a way of loving yourself the way you are. Excellent book for students, whether they're students of art, or students of life. Can't believe Robert Henri talked about all this over 100 years ago, and it's still incredibly relevant. Must be true art!
Read
April 17, 2013Amazing to read. It fills the well.
August 7, 2019
Oh, this was wonderful! Some parts were more relevant than others to my own situation (an absolute beginner), but I really loved reading Henri’s thoughts, musings, advice, and prescriptions on painting. I’d love to see more of his own paintings. I marked more passages in this book than any other in a very long time. Though a beginner, I know that one has to put ideas and directions into practice. It’s the painting, not the reading, that will advance one’s ability. And yet, I think there’s a great deal to learn here. And most important, the book contains a lot of advice for living, not just for making art. It's a book I’ll return to again and again. I would love to share even more passages here, but will copy out a few of my favorite one-liners, or close, and I’m sure they’ll come back to haunt me.
• There are strokes in the background which come up against the head and turn to get out of the way.
• Paint even the rungs of the model’s chair so a poem could be written about them.
• Make the forms of a garment so that a trip through its hills and dales will be delightful.
• Get the music that exists in the play of light over the houses in the landscape.
• Don’t let your figure look as though it had been ironed.
• There are whole canvases that are but a multitude of parsimonious, mean little touches.
• There are mighty few people who think what they think they think.
• He paints like a man going over the top of a hill, singing.
• No nation as yet is the home of art. Art is an outsider, a gypsy over the face of the earth.
• A drawing should be a verdict on the model. Don’t confuse a drawing with a map.
• There is life in the air.
• There are strokes in the background which come up against the head and turn to get out of the way.
• Paint even the rungs of the model’s chair so a poem could be written about them.
• Make the forms of a garment so that a trip through its hills and dales will be delightful.
• Get the music that exists in the play of light over the houses in the landscape.
• Don’t let your figure look as though it had been ironed.
• There are whole canvases that are but a multitude of parsimonious, mean little touches.
• There are mighty few people who think what they think they think.
• He paints like a man going over the top of a hill, singing.
• No nation as yet is the home of art. Art is an outsider, a gypsy over the face of the earth.
• A drawing should be a verdict on the model. Don’t confuse a drawing with a map.
• There is life in the air.
October 9, 2020
I picked this up because author Janet Fitch mentioned it as a great inspiration for writers as well as artists. She wasn't wrong. This isn't a how-to or craft book. It's just a series of letters and lectures by Robert Henri across a number of years that contain much wisdom about the art of seeing, being honest about and true to oneself, and persistence in creating any kind of art.
July 13, 2014
Great book, an absolute must-read for anyone starting a new venture, going through a transition, or looking to build something bigger than themselves.
January 22, 2022
Inspirational, and the critiques on his students works I have found to be very useful. Great book and no wonder so many of us keep reading and re-reading it.
August 18, 2019
Great stuff. My proper review is here: http://patricksherriff.com/2019/08/18...
August 1, 2014
Notes:
Colors - H.G. Maretta (book)
- Cool Colors + Warm Colors
- Grave Colors + Bright Colors
Adjectives:
Rich - Full - Alive - Generous - Icy - Cold - Shallow - Placid - Indolence - Fearsome - Brittle - Timid - Voluptuous - Caress - Fullness - Evasive - Puritanical - Vital - Flow - Vigor - Illusiveness
Quotes:
"Understand that in no work will you find the final word, nor will you find a receipt that will just fit you. The fun of living is that we have to make ourselves after all." Pg. 60
"The man who has honesty, integrity, the love of inquiry, the desire to see beyond, is ready to appreciate art. He needs no one to give him an art education; he is already qualified. He needs but to see pictures with his active mind, look into them for the things that belong to him..." Pg. 66
"The work of art is a result; is the output of a progress in development and stands as a record and marks the degree of development. It is not an end in itself, but the work indicates the course taken and progress made. The work is not a fidelity. It is the impress of those who live in a full play of their faculties. The individual passes, living his life, and the things he touches receive his kind of impress, and they afterwards bear the trace of his passing. They give evidence of the quality of his growth." - Pg. 67
"Strokes carry a message whether you will it or not. The stroke is just like the artist at the time he makes it. All the certainties, all the uncertainties, all the bigness of his spirit it and all the littleness are in it." Pg. 71
"Beauty is no material thing. Beauty cannot be copied. Beauty is the sensation of pleasure on the mind of the see. No thing is beautiful. But all things await the sensitive and imaginative mind that may be aroused to pleasurable emotion at sight of them. This is beauty." Pg. 79
"Every individual should study his own individuality to the end of knowing his tastes. Should cultivate the pleasures so discovered and find the most direct means of expressing those pleasures to others, thereby enjoying them over again. Art often all is but an extension of the expression of sensations too subtle for words." Pg. 87
"See without limits."
"All outward success, when it has value, is but the inevitable result of an inward success of full living, full play and enjoying of one's faculties." Pg. 93
"The value of a school should be in the meeting of students."
"The true artist regards his work as a means of talking with men, of saying his say to himself and others." Pg. 97
"Age need not destroy beauty. There are people who grow more beautiful as they grow older. If age means to them an expansion and development of character this new mental and spiritual state will have its effect on the physical. A face which in the early days was only pretty or even dull, will be transformed." Pg. 123
"You can do anything you want to do. What is rare is this actual wanting to do a specific thing. Wanting it so much that you are practically blind to all other things. That nothing else will satisfy you when you, body and soul, wish to make a certain expression and canned be distracted from this desire then you will be able to make great use of whatever technical knowledge you have. You will have clairvoyance, you will see the uses of the technique you already have, and you will invent more." Pg. 125
The pursuit of happiness is a great activity. one must be open and alive. it is the greatest feat a man has to accomplish, and spirits must flow. There must be courage. There are no easy ruts to get into which lead to happiness. A man must become interesting to himself. And most become actually expressive before he can be happy." Pg. 141
"Each genius differs only from the mass in that he has found freedom for his greatness; the greatness is everywhere, in every man, in every child. What our civilization is busy doing, mainly, is smothering greatness. It is a strange anomaly; we destroy what we love and we reverence what we destroy" Pg. 146
"An artist must first of all respond to his subject. He must be filled with emotion toward that subject and then he must make his technique so sincere, so translucent that it may be forgotten, the vale of the subject shining through." Pg. 148
"To hold the spirit of greatness is in my mind what the world was created for. The human body is beautiful as the spirit shines through, and art is great as it translates and embodies this spirit." Pg. 148
"These are my people and all that I have I owe to them." Pg. 152
"Much can be done with little."
"We are troubled by having two selves, the inner and the outer. The outer is rather dull and lets great things go by."
"I am not interested in art as a means of making a living, but I am interested in art as a means of living a life." Pg. 158
"The reasons so many artists have lived to a great age and have been so young at great age is that to such extent they have lived living, whereas most people live dying." Pg. 160
"Like to do what your work as much as a dog likes to gnaw a bone and go at it with equal interest and exclusion of everything else." Pg. 167
"Self-education is an effort to free one's course so that a full growth may become. Give your throat a chance to sing its song. All the knowledge in the world to which you have access is yours to use. Give yourself plenty of canvas room plenty of paint room. Don't bother about your originality, set yourself just as free as you can and your originality will take care of you. It will be as much a surprise to you as to anyone else. Originality cannot be preconceived and any effort to coddle it is to preconceive it, and thereby destroy it. Learn all you can, get all the information that is within your reach about the ways and means of paint." Pg. 176
"Educate yourself, do not let me educate you- use me, do not be used by me." Pg 176
"Those who have lived and grown at least to some degree in the spirit of freedom are our creative artists. They have a wonderful time. They keep the world going. They must leave their trace in some way, paint, strobe, machinery, whatever. The importance of what they do is greater than anyone estimates at the time. In face in a commercial world there are thousands of lives wasted doing things not worth doing. Human spirit is scarified. More and more things are produced without a will in the creation, and are consumed or "used" without a will in the consumption or the using." - Pg. 177
"Of course it is not easy to go one's road. Because of our education we continually get off our track, but the fight is a good one and there is joy in it if there is any success at all. After al, the goal is not making art. It is living a life. Those who live their lives will leave the stuff that is really art. Art is a result. It is the trace of those who have led their lives. It is interesting to use because we read the struggle and the degree of success the man made in his struggle to live. The great quest is, " What is worth while?" The majority of people have failed to ask themselves seriously enough, and have failed to try seriously enough to answer this question." Pg. 198
"The most beautiful life possible. wherein there is no sordidness, is only attainable by effort. To be free, to be happy and fruitful, can only be attained through sacrifice of many common but overestimated things." Pg 2006
"Real students go out of beaten paths. Whether beaten by themselves or by others and have adventures with the unknown." Pg. 213
"To be an artist is to construct." Pg. 221
"The artist is the man who leaves the crowd and goes pioneering. With him there is an idea which is his life." Pg 263
"A work of art is the trace of a magnificent struggle." Pg. 271
Colors - H.G. Maretta (book)
- Cool Colors + Warm Colors
- Grave Colors + Bright Colors
Adjectives:
Rich - Full - Alive - Generous - Icy - Cold - Shallow - Placid - Indolence - Fearsome - Brittle - Timid - Voluptuous - Caress - Fullness - Evasive - Puritanical - Vital - Flow - Vigor - Illusiveness
Quotes:
"Understand that in no work will you find the final word, nor will you find a receipt that will just fit you. The fun of living is that we have to make ourselves after all." Pg. 60
"The man who has honesty, integrity, the love of inquiry, the desire to see beyond, is ready to appreciate art. He needs no one to give him an art education; he is already qualified. He needs but to see pictures with his active mind, look into them for the things that belong to him..." Pg. 66
"The work of art is a result; is the output of a progress in development and stands as a record and marks the degree of development. It is not an end in itself, but the work indicates the course taken and progress made. The work is not a fidelity. It is the impress of those who live in a full play of their faculties. The individual passes, living his life, and the things he touches receive his kind of impress, and they afterwards bear the trace of his passing. They give evidence of the quality of his growth." - Pg. 67
"Strokes carry a message whether you will it or not. The stroke is just like the artist at the time he makes it. All the certainties, all the uncertainties, all the bigness of his spirit it and all the littleness are in it." Pg. 71
"Beauty is no material thing. Beauty cannot be copied. Beauty is the sensation of pleasure on the mind of the see. No thing is beautiful. But all things await the sensitive and imaginative mind that may be aroused to pleasurable emotion at sight of them. This is beauty." Pg. 79
"Every individual should study his own individuality to the end of knowing his tastes. Should cultivate the pleasures so discovered and find the most direct means of expressing those pleasures to others, thereby enjoying them over again. Art often all is but an extension of the expression of sensations too subtle for words." Pg. 87
"See without limits."
"All outward success, when it has value, is but the inevitable result of an inward success of full living, full play and enjoying of one's faculties." Pg. 93
"The value of a school should be in the meeting of students."
"The true artist regards his work as a means of talking with men, of saying his say to himself and others." Pg. 97
"Age need not destroy beauty. There are people who grow more beautiful as they grow older. If age means to them an expansion and development of character this new mental and spiritual state will have its effect on the physical. A face which in the early days was only pretty or even dull, will be transformed." Pg. 123
"You can do anything you want to do. What is rare is this actual wanting to do a specific thing. Wanting it so much that you are practically blind to all other things. That nothing else will satisfy you when you, body and soul, wish to make a certain expression and canned be distracted from this desire then you will be able to make great use of whatever technical knowledge you have. You will have clairvoyance, you will see the uses of the technique you already have, and you will invent more." Pg. 125
The pursuit of happiness is a great activity. one must be open and alive. it is the greatest feat a man has to accomplish, and spirits must flow. There must be courage. There are no easy ruts to get into which lead to happiness. A man must become interesting to himself. And most become actually expressive before he can be happy." Pg. 141
"Each genius differs only from the mass in that he has found freedom for his greatness; the greatness is everywhere, in every man, in every child. What our civilization is busy doing, mainly, is smothering greatness. It is a strange anomaly; we destroy what we love and we reverence what we destroy" Pg. 146
"An artist must first of all respond to his subject. He must be filled with emotion toward that subject and then he must make his technique so sincere, so translucent that it may be forgotten, the vale of the subject shining through." Pg. 148
"To hold the spirit of greatness is in my mind what the world was created for. The human body is beautiful as the spirit shines through, and art is great as it translates and embodies this spirit." Pg. 148
"These are my people and all that I have I owe to them." Pg. 152
"Much can be done with little."
"We are troubled by having two selves, the inner and the outer. The outer is rather dull and lets great things go by."
"I am not interested in art as a means of making a living, but I am interested in art as a means of living a life." Pg. 158
"The reasons so many artists have lived to a great age and have been so young at great age is that to such extent they have lived living, whereas most people live dying." Pg. 160
"Like to do what your work as much as a dog likes to gnaw a bone and go at it with equal interest and exclusion of everything else." Pg. 167
"Self-education is an effort to free one's course so that a full growth may become. Give your throat a chance to sing its song. All the knowledge in the world to which you have access is yours to use. Give yourself plenty of canvas room plenty of paint room. Don't bother about your originality, set yourself just as free as you can and your originality will take care of you. It will be as much a surprise to you as to anyone else. Originality cannot be preconceived and any effort to coddle it is to preconceive it, and thereby destroy it. Learn all you can, get all the information that is within your reach about the ways and means of paint." Pg. 176
"Educate yourself, do not let me educate you- use me, do not be used by me." Pg 176
"Those who have lived and grown at least to some degree in the spirit of freedom are our creative artists. They have a wonderful time. They keep the world going. They must leave their trace in some way, paint, strobe, machinery, whatever. The importance of what they do is greater than anyone estimates at the time. In face in a commercial world there are thousands of lives wasted doing things not worth doing. Human spirit is scarified. More and more things are produced without a will in the creation, and are consumed or "used" without a will in the consumption or the using." - Pg. 177
"Of course it is not easy to go one's road. Because of our education we continually get off our track, but the fight is a good one and there is joy in it if there is any success at all. After al, the goal is not making art. It is living a life. Those who live their lives will leave the stuff that is really art. Art is a result. It is the trace of those who have led their lives. It is interesting to use because we read the struggle and the degree of success the man made in his struggle to live. The great quest is, " What is worth while?" The majority of people have failed to ask themselves seriously enough, and have failed to try seriously enough to answer this question." Pg. 198
"The most beautiful life possible. wherein there is no sordidness, is only attainable by effort. To be free, to be happy and fruitful, can only be attained through sacrifice of many common but overestimated things." Pg 2006
"Real students go out of beaten paths. Whether beaten by themselves or by others and have adventures with the unknown." Pg. 213
"To be an artist is to construct." Pg. 221
"The artist is the man who leaves the crowd and goes pioneering. With him there is an idea which is his life." Pg 263
"A work of art is the trace of a magnificent struggle." Pg. 271
May 22, 2025
Robert Henri's certainty, confidence, and clarity of communication make this a very enjoyable and inspiring collection of thoughts. At times the scrappiness of the compilation is jarring — he circles back on himself, comes at odds with his own definitions for beauty or Seeing, or writes paragraphs of criticism on paintings we cannot see nor cannot look up. This is recognised in the introduction, and isn't a serious fault. You dip into the book and interpret what comes at you however best you can. It makes you want to See and to Paint, at the very least to sketch and draw. I can see this book being a lifelong companion, one whose advice and relevance hopefully is always in flux.
I think ending with a chapter of notes on Henri's lectures — made by a far more concise and less poetic student (M.R.) — was a real misstep. They remind me far too much of the notes I've taken myself in lectures: gestural, half-formed, and lagging desperately as the lecture blazes on.
I think ending with a chapter of notes on Henri's lectures — made by a far more concise and less poetic student (M.R.) — was a real misstep. They remind me far too much of the notes I've taken myself in lectures: gestural, half-formed, and lagging desperately as the lecture blazes on.
August 10, 2019
I was assigned THE ART SPIRIT in art school back in the early 1980s. It’s a collection of letters, articles and teaching notes from painter/teacher Robert Henri, who inspired the Ashcan School. I didn’t read it. I didn’t do much of anything for the first two years of art school besides get into trouble. I can’t go back, of course, but I can try to capture what I missed. Maybe I wasn’t ready to read Henri then. I tried, but nothing grabbed me. Now, though, I find his teaching inspiring. I paint all the time, much more than I did in art school, and his advice resonates with me. I like to think, What if? But that just wastes valuable time I can use to paint.
January 8, 2023
•خوندنش چند هفته/ماه طول میکشه. ذات کتاب اینو میطلبه•
اسم این کتاب رو از آقای دیوید لینچ تو مستندشون شنیده بودم. وقتی اون آدم (به عنوان نقاش) میگه این کتاب باعث شده بتونه مسیر هنریشو طی کنه، میشه فهمید با کتابی معمولی طرف نیستیم.
این کتاب خیلی قدیمیه و مثل هر کتابی که از گذشته میاد، جاهایی رو داره که شبیه نصیحته ولی خب، اگه مماشات کنید در حال خوندن یکجور کیمیای سعادت در بحث هنر هستین.
من خوندنشو به هرکسی که مثل من «خودآموخته» در عرصهی هنر شنا میکنه و تصمیم گرفته چیزهایی بزرگتر از خودش خلق کنه، توصیه میکنم. چون یه جورایی نوری در تاریکیه. ما دائم بزرگتری رو کنار خودمون نداشتیم که برای سؤالهای ریز و درشت؛ بهش رجوع کنیم و آقای هنری؛ در این سرگشتگی، درست مثل یک آغوش گرم و دانا، ما رو با اضطرابمون مینشونه جلوش و میگه: ششش، درست میشه کمکم.
ما گاهی کلافهایم. مخصوصا اون اوایل راه. که سبک/سیاق/روش فردیم در نقاشیم(یا هر هنر دیگهای) چیه؟ اصلا از کجا باید بفهمم؟ از کجا میاد تا بفهمم؟ حد وسط «بلدیِ تکنیک» و «ثبت روح هرچیز» کجاست؟ چجوری راههای بهتر ابرازکردنو پیدا کنیم؟
نه اینکه برای هرکدام از اینها جواب مشخص و معلومی وجود داشته باشه؛ ولی در صحرای هنر که آدم میتونه روزها و ماهها با هزاران سوال کلنجار بره، این مثل یک کتاب مرجعه برای آگاهی و مهمتر از اون: آرامشی که از آگاهی میاد.
باید آروم بشیم تا بتونیم مسیر هنریمون رو آهسته و پیوسته طی کنیم.
اسم این کتاب رو از آقای دیوید لینچ تو مستندشون شنیده بودم. وقتی اون آدم (به عنوان نقاش) میگه این کتاب باعث شده بتونه مسیر هنریشو طی کنه، میشه فهمید با کتابی معمولی طرف نیستیم.
این کتاب خیلی قدیمیه و مثل هر کتابی که از گذشته میاد، جاهایی رو داره که شبیه نصیحته ولی خب، اگه مماشات کنید در حال خوندن یکجور کیمیای سعادت در بحث هنر هستین.
من خوندنشو به هرکسی که مثل من «خودآموخته» در عرصهی هنر شنا میکنه و تصمیم گرفته چیزهایی بزرگتر از خودش خلق کنه، توصیه میکنم. چون یه جورایی نوری در تاریکیه. ما دائم بزرگتری رو کنار خودمون نداشتیم که برای سؤالهای ریز و درشت؛ بهش رجوع کنیم و آقای هنری؛ در این سرگشتگی، درست مثل یک آغوش گرم و دانا، ما رو با اضطرابمون مینشونه جلوش و میگه: ششش، درست میشه کمکم.
ما گاهی کلافهایم. مخصوصا اون اوایل راه. که سبک/سیاق/روش فردیم در نقاشیم(یا هر هنر دیگهای) چیه؟ اصلا از کجا باید بفهمم؟ از کجا میاد تا بفهمم؟ حد وسط «بلدیِ تکنیک» و «ثبت روح هرچیز» کجاست؟ چجوری راههای بهتر ابرازکردنو پیدا کنیم؟
نه اینکه برای هرکدام از اینها جواب مشخص و معلومی وجود داشته باشه؛ ولی در صحرای هنر که آدم میتونه روزها و ماهها با هزاران سوال کلنجار بره، این مثل یک کتاب مرجعه برای آگاهی و مهمتر از اون: آرامشی که از آگاهی میاد.
باید آروم بشیم تا بتونیم مسیر هنریمون رو آهسته و پیوسته طی کنیم.
November 18, 2024
I hardly know where to begin with a review for this book - except to say that it was wonderful, amazing, exceptional, and so worth reading! It was written by a painter and painting teacher in the early 20th century, but it's so much more than "how to paint" or even "how to do art." It's far more of a "why to do art" book than anything else.
I loved the relaxed and almost stream-of-consciousness style that this was written in. The book is mostly a collection of lecture notes and letters to students, and is very personable and engaging.
If you are a creative or an artist of any kind, I highly recommend reading this book!
I loved the relaxed and almost stream-of-consciousness style that this was written in. The book is mostly a collection of lecture notes and letters to students, and is very personable and engaging.
If you are a creative or an artist of any kind, I highly recommend reading this book!
July 4, 2024
One of my favourite books. It’s only 200 pages yet it took me four months to finish because of how thoughtful it is. Loved the core message of finding the joy through creativity, not just in art, but in any aspect of life. My only complaint is it is a little verbose at times. I plan on reading it again.
August 21, 2019
That book was so great.
August 15, 2020
特好为人师 特零碎絮叨 东一榔头西一棒子想到哪儿是啥儿还啥都扯 大到文化教育 社会氛围 小到个人追求 审美情趣 甚至是具体笔法色彩啥的。乱炖。但有很多会心一击的片刻是很好的 当然也可能是我的心很容易被击中。后头的画儿印得蛮好的 感觉纸挺贵 大约为了获得这种体验所以没有以插画形式来 来回翻费劲了点儿 整体还行吧。
最后夸翻译那儿尴尬得我抠墙皮 哎。
最后夸翻译那儿尴尬得我抠墙皮 哎。
September 5, 2023
Repetitive and completely unstructured. Repeatedly states that you must be authentically yourself and everything should be interconnected and connect at a central point. His technical advice on painting is nice, and not nearly as repetitive as his personal philosophical musings. I personally believe you could find a simple paragraph or two synopsis of what Henri is saying and it would be equally beneficial to read as the 284 pages of this book. I believe this book is slightly below average, I would not recommend anybody actually read it given it's needlessly repetitive padding out that makes this six times longer than it needed to be. This is the only book I can think of that I personally believe a synopsis of the ideas of the book would give the same benefits as reading the entire book unless you are interested in the painting critiques, but even with those critiques included, this should be no more than 50 pages long.
July 20, 2014
My interest is photography and so I read it looking for education in composition. Boy, was I not disappointed. The Art Spirit was written in 1923, the result of putting together various documents by Henri and his students. Henri provided me so many useful quotes that he overwhelms my list of quotes. Such as "There are always a few who get at and feel the undercurrent, and these simply use the surface appearances selecting them and using them as tools to express the undercurrent, the real life" and "A landscape has got to mean a great deal to anyone before it can be painted in any worthwhile way. It is harder to see a landscape than to paint it." And, "develop your power of seeing through the effort and pleasure of seeing." And, "Don't ask for criticism until you are sure you can't give it yourself. Then you will be in a fine state to receive it." I see no better way to review it.
August 7, 2020
I first saw this book years ago, then bought it last year in Scotland, and I've been slowly reading it for over a year now. Lots of inspiring bits, mainly for visual artists, but useful for writers, too, and also life in general.
"See things not as they are, but as you see them."
"Don't worry about your originality. You couldn't get rid of it even if you wanted to."
"All satisfying things are good organizations."
"All education must be self education."
"It takes wit, and interest and energy to be happy."
"See things not as they are, but as you see them."
"Don't worry about your originality. You couldn't get rid of it even if you wanted to."
"All satisfying things are good organizations."
"All education must be self education."
"It takes wit, and interest and energy to be happy."
June 13, 2007
when man's acknowledgement of his true identity and substance, man will creatively discover what has been with him all along and be elightened as a result
November 30, 2007
Recommended read from an Art professor - excellent read! My copy is all dog-eared up from saving and re-reading favorite passages.
June 6, 2009
Robert Henri, leading American artist and teacher. One of my favorite books about the art of teaching art.
August 2, 2021
Inspiring.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 311 reviews