Art Thinking: How To Carve Out Creative Space in a World of Schedules, Budgets, and Bosses

This is a detailed framework for applying an artistic mind-set to daily living using the tools and language of business. Whitaker (entrepreneur in residence, New Museum Incubator, NY; Museum Legs) holds an MBA from Yale University and an MFA in painting from University College, London. With a blend of warmth and rigor, the author draws on her background teaching business to artists, designers, and administrators, outlining seven principles to guide readers who want to explore both the risks and invaluable rewards of creative work. Central to these tenets is the importance of habits such as setting aside "studio time," with the understanding that innovation succeeds when one incorporates discipline as well as flexibility. The author further asserts that valuing process rather than a fixed product allows for the possibility of failure. Claiming the significance of artistic endeavors that lead to an eventual profit or reinvestment and therefore to further opportunity is an important intention. Business case studies and insights from an array of inspirational figures illustrate the principles Whitaker sets out in the introduction.