Living the Artist's Life, Updated & Revised

I picked up this book after I resigned from my job of six years as an art teacher, cashing in my retirement fund and traveling to Europe with my wife for 3 weeks for the first time ever. As soon as we got back I had no clue what to expect but hard work and some struggle. A friend had "Living the Artist's Life" sitting on her desk and I asked if I could borrow it. It was exactly what I needed to reassure, build and replace sometimes lost confidence in my decision to pursue art full time.Paul, the author, writes very directly to demystify issues some aspiring artists might struggle to comprehend. He lays out clear direction. And, most importantly, he uses his own struggles and successes as a backdrop for all of the knowledge he shares with the viewer. In the end this book is really half novel and half guide. I was already in line with much of the advice given in the book and I still found it relevant as so many of us artists go to our studios, shut the door and begin to doubt ourselves. We are not alone in our struggles and this book was a great reminder!

This book does have a few useful nuggets of advise for working artists, but you will have to wade through endless personal commentary. Some of the personal stuff sets the stage for the advise but much of the book is this man talking about himself and his burning desire to be a published author of fiction - which he is not.He seems to use this book as a platform to pitch his unpublished novel by attempting to wax poetic about his 'fascinating' life as a gallery director. Be warned: the book includes passages describing having sex with his wife and discusses the reaction of his teenaged sons' to a particularly noisy session, his need for a Harley, over-dramatized/self-glorifying passages about his unpublished novel, inline skating, driving over 100mph on a motorcycle and his ability to work hard. So ridiculous and so needy in a pathetic middle-aged man sort of way, it became amusing - I laughed on several occasions. I got the distinct feeling the book was not about helping the readers, but about helping the author feel better about himself. He even compares the book tour for this self-help book to Charles Dickens' book tour... seriously?Now to be fair, if he would consider condensing the book from its current 235 pages to about 85-100... With more samples and resources and keep the personal glory days stories to a minimum...It would be a useful book. As it stands now, you have to sit through his ego-stroking.

I appreciate your epic struggle Paul, plus it's (mostly) interesting. However this book doesn't have much concrete info on what I was seeking and really needing; how to approach and enter the business-of-art world. A half-page on Pricing Your Artwork: 'look at works comparable to yours and since you're unknown, charge less' ?Your story, if more or less true, shows that you have worked ten-times harder at success, heck a hundred-times harder than I probably ever will, and THAT is the A-to-Z crux of it. Fame, Money, Not-Being-Forgotten = Very-Hard WORK. And work that is so often tedious and not-much-fun, not to mention UNCEASING. So a successful artist seems to be one who is equally adept at marketing, internet mastery, graphic design, finance, travel, socializing, boredom and the quixotic nature of customers, not to mention shameless self-promotion, all good things. But how to do this if one has none or few of these traits? Success doesn't mean Real Quality, but without it Real Quality will be forever lost.

Living the Artists Life is a powerful guidebook and a necessary read for any artist with aspirations of doing more than selling an occasional piece at the local art fair. Through his book Dorell creates an honest and thorough resource aimed to help artists navigate the unpredictable and sometimes intimidating world of art. As an emerging professional artist I am encouraged by his book because he has unveiled some of the challenges and answered many of the questions I have had about trying to communicate with galleries and build professional relationships in the art world.Dorell has had decades of experience surviving and succeeding as a designer and successful gallery owner. I am impressed with his compassion, practical experience and his commitment toward the wholistic wellbeing of the artist.JMac

Very good read for anyone who has a passion for the arts and is interested in being involved in the art world today. Dorell has a beautifully genuine and honest approach to the way he writes and his view on the growing world of art. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is in the pursuit of an art career in any field whether it be music, theatre, arts and entertainment. I would love to meet Paul if I ever had a chance to.

Paul Dorrell cuts through the clutter and noise that can be daunting to an aspiring artist. His words of encouragement are a tonic toanyone who has been through the ups and downs of trying to be creative on any level. As a former aspiring artist and now aseasoned artist, it was mildly surprising that I had been doing some of the things highlighted in the book and pleasantly surprisingthat I could learn a thing or two or three or four from the read.Everyone's path is different, but Paul's book can help encourage the inner artist that needs to emerge to help out the breathing, walking and toiling artist in the real world.

In many ways an autobiographical wonderful insight and adventure into the life of a creative. Every real artist should read this book. The author is extremely insightful, personal, candid and inspiring while covering the practical side of the artist's life. Yet as the title implies, the book is truly about living the life of an artist. Not always pretty, but honors the joy and grandeur of creativity. I think I will return to this book many times in the years to come, especially when a good kick in the rear end is needed!

Some interesting thoughts. Approaches to achieving your goal and how to mentally get there through all of the self imposed and other blocks. Good read.

Der Autor beschreibt die Auf und Abs seines Galeristendaseins, seinen Kampf ums berufliche Überleben und gibt Tipps für Künstler in Sachen Selbstpräsentation. Ein ermutigendes Buch. Als Malerin fand ich einige hilfreiche Tipps und Betrachtungsweisen. An einigen Stellen hätte ich mir eine genauere Schilderung seiner Tätigkeit gewünscht. Was genau hat er getan, wenn er an einigen stellen schreibt, wie er sich nun noch mehr ins Zeug legt, noch härter arbeitet,etc.... Aber das will er vielleicht auch nicht der breiten Öffentlichkeit präsentieren.