Book List
recommended reading
Art, Creativity, and Learning
Eagleton, Terry. Literary Theory. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1993.
Read this if you want to know why classics are classic.
Gardner, Howard. Frames Of Mind: The Theory Of Multiple Intelligences. Basic Books, 1993.
Beautiful, somewhat over-exposed idea of how people may have different kinds of genius.
Ghilselin, Brewster. The Creative Process. Mentor/University of California Press, 1955.
One of many good books interviewing famous artists and scientists, talking in their own words about how they work.
Csikszentmihalyi, Mihaly. Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience. Harper Perennial, 1991.
This will explain why you loose sense of real time when you're being creative.
Huizinga, John. Homo Ludens: A Study of the Play-Element in Culture. Boston: Beaker Press, 1955.
Great "Art for Art's Sake" without being elitist: Why do we make art? Because we do.
Gleick, James. Chaos: Making a New Science. New York: Penguin, 1987
If you haven't studied fractals or physics, this book will fundamentally change the way you understand the world.
Booth, Eric. The Everyday Work of Art. Sourcebooks, 1997
Eric Booth is one of the most inspirational teaching artists around. His book has a lovely perspective on art in everyday life.
Jenson, Eric. Arts With The Brain In Mind. Association for Curriculum Development, 2001.
A brain researcher who believes that the arts actually improve brain development and function. Cool.
Ivey, Bill, & Tepper, Steven. Engaging Art: The Next Great Transformation of America's Cultural Life. Routledge, 2007
Forget Richard Florida. This book is the most exciting recent one about what is really going on in arts today.
Leadership
Depree, Max. Leadership is an Art. E. Lansing: Michigan State University Press, 1987.
A poetic little book about managing people for excellence, without any hype or jargon. Simply elegant.
Fisher, Roger & Ury, William L. Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1991.
Try the audio-tape version: the BATNA approach has direct application to fundraising.
Personal & Artistic Development
Cameron, Julia. The Artist's Way. New York: Tarcher/Putnam, 1992.
Although this borders on a self-help book, it introduces some truly innovative concepts about the artistic process.
Lloyd, Carol. Creating A Life Worth Living. New York: HaperCollins, 1997.
Carol Lloyd credits Julia Cameron in her forward: But the beautiful thing about Lloyd's work is it shows atypical artists in practice. Lots of great ideas here, too.
Keirsey, David, & Bates, Marilyn. Please Understand Me. Del Mar: Prometheus Nemesis, 1984.
This extention of Myers-Briggs personality theory is a great book for learning how to deal with non-artistic types!
Screenwriting & Film
Seger, Linda. Making a Good Script Great. Hollywood: Samuel French, 1987.
The original screenwriting book (after Syd Field) and pretty much still the best. Some of the movie references are dated, however.
Obst, Lynda. Hello, He Lied—and Other Tales from the Hollywood Trenches. Boston: Little Brown, 1996.
A female producer's version of William Goldman's scathing books on the hollywood system. Illuminating for project management in general.
Theatre
Brook, Peter. The Empty Space. Discus, 1969.
This book still tells what's missing from most theatre: Deadly vs. lively.
Jones, Robert Edmond. The Dramatic Imagination. New York: Theatre Arts Books, 1969.
This books shows you how to think in stage pictures.
Egri, Lajos. The Art of Dramatic Writing. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1960.
Just a great classic about dramatic structure. Some ideas dated in term of heavy realism, but it wears so well!
Catron, Louis. Writing, Producing, and Selling Your Play. Prentice Hall, 1984.
Very practical playwright guide from the pre-Kushner era.
Dolan, Jill. The Feminist Spectator as Critic. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan, 1991.
This book ruins the concept of traditional narratives. But, in the long run, it explains why men never see enough "action" in women's work: and probably never will.
Writing
Woolf, Virgina. A Room of One's Own. New York: Harcort Brace Jovanovich, 1957.
Surprizingly warm, rational and reassuring, from a speech that she gave to young writers.
Goldberg, Natalie. Writing Down the Bones. Shambhala, 1986.
The best little workbook for getting to the meat of your own soul through writing.
© 2008 Emily Cicchini | Original design by Andreas Viklund.