First published 2024
Nicholson Baker feels burned out after years researching government conspiracies and violence for his previous book. The world has lost its brightness. Photography no longer satisfies his creative needs. He wants to capture more from what he sees around him. Baker decides to learn painting from scratch, despite his fear of failure. He takes classes with local instructors, studies YouTube videos, and examines work by master painters past and present. His goal seems simple: paint faces, clouds, and landscapes that actually look like faces, clouds, and landscapes. Baker documents his artistic journey from his first clumsy brushstrokes on paper through gradual improvement. He recalls growing up with two painter parents. The process teaches him new ways of seeing the world. Baker fills the book with his own artwork alongside pieces by artists worldwide. Through repeated attempts, failures, and small victories, he discovers that learning to paint offers more than technical skill. The act of putting brush to paper becomes a way to witness both beauty and suffering in the world around him.
Genres: biography, art, memoir
Vibes: emotional-atmospheric, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: personal-journey, self-discovery
352 pages · Paperback · Penguin Press