"Use Your Hands" ~ Austin Kleon

"Use Your Hands" is the name of chapter 4 of our book Steal Like An Artist and is appropriately named. This chapter is all about getting away from your computer and using the original "digits", your fingers/hands. All to often, I catch myself wanting to just jump in and do a project from beginning to end on the computer, but, this chapter reminds me to use different mediums. The author even tells about having used newspapers and markers to create a book of poems. He would go through the paper pieces and mark out words, stating that all of his senses were used. He felt the paper and pen in his hands and could smell the marker and newsprint. There was also the "faint squeak" of the marker as it went across the paper. "When I was making the poems, it didn't feel like work. It felt like play." I really like that statement and will try to "play" more when I work.

I've noticed that if I've taken a project from beginning to end only using the computer, it can seem flat and lifeless. But, one that I've done multiple sketches on, or even re-started going in a different direction, have much more life to them and more personality. By using more of your senses, even if it's just sketching out more ideas after you've already started the project, you can end up with a better final product.

I don't think computers can be very good at helping us generate ideas, unless, of course you're looking at Pinterest. Haha! Seriously, they do have some really good ideas about a wide variety of things on there. Personally, I think that the things around us can be so inspirational. I like to use my pets as a humorous reprieve from day to day issues, and they are about as far from a computer as you can get. So, find those things that take you out of that mindset — get away from your computer and do something you enjoy — the ideas will come.

It was suggested that we set up an area, away from our computer, to use as our "analog" office. I don't really have room for that, but, I do have an area I go to when I want some quite time. One of my bookcases is in my son's old room, and it has my oak rocking chair and a reading light next to it. There's a window right next to them, too. So, sometimes I like to just go back there and sit in my rocker and read. It's peaceful and away from most of the electronics (there is a t.v. and a boom box in there, but those are for when my son comes home for visits). This isn't a desk, but it's a good place to relax and think, and it's away from my computer.

There are always some interesting quotes in this book, and in this chapter there were two, one by John Cleese, whom most of us know from his Monty Python days, and one by Edward Tufte, whom I've never heard of before. Therefore, I had to look him up. I found him referred to as "the world's best-known expert in data visualization." That's a pretty big title to stand up for in my book. Upon further research I found that he has written many books, had multiple exhibitions, teaches and gives seminars. He is a professor, statistician, writer and sculptor. The quote that is in our book is "I have stared long enough at the glowing flat rectangles of computer screens. Let us give more time for doing things in the real world . . . plant a plant, walk the dogs, read a real book, go to the opera." This is great advice and goes along with this chapter to "Use Your Hands." I ran across some quotes that are from a one-day course "Presenting Data and Information" taught by Edward Tufte. Here's one that really stood out to me "Can the same image prompt different stories and memories in different people? That's a good test for a 'super graphic'." I have included a couple of his book covers and then just a random image of one of his designs that I found.