Trust the Process: An Artist's Guide to Letting Go [Paperback]

Shaun McNiff (Author)

Book Description

Release date: March 31, 1998

Whether in painting, poetry, performance, music, dance, or life, there is an intelligence working in every situation. This force is the primary carrier of creation.

If we trust it and follow its natural movement, it will astound us with its ability to find a way through problems—and even make creative use of our mistakes and failures.

There is a magic to this process that cannot be controlled by the ego. Somehow it always finds the way to the place where you need to be, and a destination you never could have known in advance.

When everything seems as if it is hopeless and going nowhere . . . trust the process.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"McNiff is able to expand the reader's view of what it means to truly live with the labyrinthine path of the creative spirit, conveying an unlimited sense of the ways of the lived imagination."— Common Boundary



"The instructions and insights in this 'artist's guide to letting go' can lead you to creative heights and depths no matter what your medium."— Yoga Journal

About the Author

Shaun McNiff is internationally recognized as a founder and leading figure in the arts and healing field. University Professor at Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, he is past president of the American Art Therapy Association and the author of several other books including Art As Medicine, Trust the Process, and Creating with Others .

Product Details

• Paperback: 210 pages
• Publisher: Shambhala; 1st edition (March 31, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1570623570
• ISBN-13: 978-1570623578
• Product Dimensions: 5.9 x 0.6 x 8.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #79,226 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #64 in Books > Arts & Photography > Study & Teaching

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

195 of 198 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars More useful to me than The Artist's Way... October 19, 1998

By Kat

Format:Paperback

This book helps and inspires me (a visual artist) in a way that Julia Cameron's popular (and wonderful) work has not. For those of us who have a kneejerk negative reaction to following rules and doing "exercises", preferring instead to create our own structure, this is a refreshing alternative to her more structured approach. McNiff emphasizes that the sense of despair we feel when the "flow" isn't flowing is itself an integral part of the process of making art, which I found particularly encouraging and true to my experience. He also encourages the reader to get going by creating multiple small, "disposable" works, which can contain the roots of larger pieces... Read this book!

221 of 226 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Has opened a doorway I thought was forever closed.... January 31, 2002

By A Customer

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I have done visual art and writing for nearly 20 years.Several years ago I hit what first appeared to be a "dry spell". To my dismay that "spell" become a year, then two, then three and so on. I found myself profoundly blocked on all levels and the creative energy seemed to have left me altogether. I fell into a state of depression, due in part to this loss of creative energy which felt much like a loss of that which is most core to me. No what what I tried, the door remained tightly closed.

In the process of looking for the skeleton key to reopen this door I looked at nearly every book on creativity and things on the market. Many of them lacked the substance and understanding that I needed. Some were aimed at people that had never been creative and therefore the exercises never worked for me. Others used almost a Twelve Step approach which, while effective for some, didn't work for me personally. Like another reviewer said I, too, found many of the "Step 1, Step 2, Step 3..." approaches to be more frustrating and limiting, only further closing this door of creative expression.

...I had never read the book, but decided to buy it based on some good reviews and a large dose of desperation. I was skeptical and figured I would likely be disappointed by yet another run of the mill "how to be creative" work.

I couldn't have been more wrong. When I finally began reading the book it felt different - totally different. I found things that were pragmatic and rooted in a perspective I understood - the artist that has lost the inspiration and creative flow. It felt like a tangible guide that had the potential of reopening that locked door.

The book has helped me move into a place that I had previously thought to be gone forever.... While I am not back to creative art at the same frequency I was before, the door has been opened a crack and that is enough to keep me working, to keep me moving forward and working to break the door free from its hinges.

I bought this book partially because of the positive reviews. That is why I felt that it was my responsibility to write a review as well. Perhaps it may encourage someone else in my situation to consider this book. It isn't a magical cure because the author is far too practical to attempt to provide one to the reader. Rather it is a sequence of little steps that snowball and produce a result that is often surprising and significant.

If I had to recommend a single book on creativity to people, especially people that have been artists of whatever form, I would recommend this one.

To the author, I remain grateful for the keys to a door that leads me to the most important place in my life - the expression and realization of life through creativity. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Read more ›

72 of 79 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Trust This Book! April 20, 1999

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

This is simply one of the best books on the subject of personal creativity & art. Author McNiff doesn't get preachy and didactic, and always gets to the point. He also doesn't engage the reader with "new age" solutions and descriptions. Clear and balanced.

If you have a curiosity about your creativity, or bringing about artistic expression in your life, or you're an artist on the "path", this book is a gift.

32 of 34 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A license to create... August 2, 2002

By Karen Carnabucci

Format:Paperback

Whether you are an artist, dancer, writer, musician, healer or seeker, you will find inspirition and validation of your path with this book. Shaun McNiff, artist and internationally known advocate of the creative arts therapies, presents a thoughtful and beautifully written case for trusting the natural movement of the creative process. This wonderful book includes observations from "famous" artists about the creative process, anecdotes from ordinary people who are experimenting with new attitudes in their daily lives and suggestions from the author about creating a satisfying life. In a world where destruction has become a form of popular entertainment, this book offers an alternative. Worth reading, then rereading again and again!

35 of 42 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars fantastic, inspirational June 16, 1998

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

This is must reading for anyone interested in making art-- even the non-artist will find encouragement and inspiration in McNiff's poetic observations and wonderful infusions of art and life. Wonderful book for those who want to make art, but dont know where to begin and need both practical and soulful advice on how to start. McNiff is a gifted writer who brings the art studio to life through his words and sensitivity to the creative process in life and art.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent advice for aspiring artists and others as well. March 9, 2007

By Desert Rat

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is a well written, easy to read book on creativity. I found it very useful in pursuing my photography hobby. I took off a star because like so many books the author seemed to run out of things to say about 2/3 of the way through and filled the remainder with repetition and unrelated "

stuff".

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A great book June 4, 2006

By Rebecca

Format:Paperback

I loved this book. Lots of food for thought, and lots of directions for exploring. I read it slowly over a period of a couple of months, and plan to pick it up and read a chapter here and there when I'm stuck.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Must-read for all artists! December 2, 2009

By Devoted Satellite

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

We artists are a moody bunch and we are usually our own worse enemy when it comes to being productive and creative. This book is a wonderful read for any artist to help them work through the difficulties facing them during the creative process. I highly recommend it.