Preview - Everything is a Remix, So Steal Like An Artist

Artist Austin Kleon

At a time when it is nearly impossible to construct a creative work that is completely original, many individuals may find themselves struggling to come up with different ways to manifest unique creations.

Artist Austin Kleon and filmmaker Kirby Ferguson are hoping to persuade you to do the exact opposite: use what's already around you, and remix it.

Kleon, who identifies himself as "a writer who draws," got the idea for this panel from fans who drew comparisons between his and Ferguson's work. Via an email conversation, Kleon explained how the panel came to fruition.

"I've been a big fan of Kirby Ferguson's Everything Is A Remix video series since he started it last year, and while I was writing my book Steal Like An Artist, so many people sent me links to his work and mentioned how well our messages complimented each other," Kleon said. "I thought it'd be great if we got together and did something for SXSW, so I came up with the idea of showing clips from EIAR, and then having a conversation about what lessons all creators—not just DJs or samplers—can take away from our ideas."

Kleon's panel, with contribution from Ferguson, will be a combination of convergence, film and music elements. Kleon's portion of the panel discussion is based on a talk he first had with a class at a New York communinity college in March of this year, which focused on the 10 things he wished he had learned in college as a budding artist and writer:

1. Steal like an artist. 
2. Don’t wait until you know who you are to get started. 
3. Write the book you want to read. 
4. Use your hands. 
5. Side projects and hobbies are important. 
6. The secret: do good work and share it with people. 
7. Geography is no longer our master. 
8. Be nice. (The world is a small town.) 
9. Be boring. (It’s the only way to get work done.) 
10. Creativity is subtraction.

These ideas are evaluated in greater depth in Kleon's book Steal Like An Artist, which will be available online or at your local bookstore in March 2012.

Filmmaker Kirby Ferguson

Kirby Ferguson will be showing parts of and discussing his four-part web video series, Everything Is a Remix, for his portion of the panel. This series (which has three videos currently available, with the fourth set to be released later this month) is essentially an introduction to the term "remix," and a look into how many different social elements and products have been remixed for the the past several decades, and even centuries, though the term had yet to be coined. Ferguson will delve further into the ideas explored in his videos during his panel discussion.

Here is part one of the series:


Everything is a Remix Part 1 from Kirby Ferguson on Vimeo.

Kleon hopes that this panel will answer any lingering questions about how remixing can be applied to creativity.

"There have been a lot of people who have examined remix culture, but very few who have provided practical advice for those of us who find ourselves living and making things in it," Kleon said.

"Okay, you've shown us that 'nothing is completely original' and 'everything is a remix' —now what?"