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This book is for anyone practicing an art, or wishing to. The author reveals that the nature and purpose of artistic practice has been forgotten in modern times, and now we must unlearn a number of misconceptions before we can discover the delight of creating something profoundly personal, something beyond compare.

From the Introduction: We are born to create. Isn't that why we feel so fully awake--so completely present--when inspirations flow through us and become creations?

The practice of an art is supposed to invite inspirations and give us a means of expressing them in a profoundly personal way. However, in modern times, the arts have become increasingly like competitive sports and academic subjects, complete with methods to be followed, goals to be attained, and contests to be won. As a result, the learning and the practice of an art is now more likely to suppress inspirations than express them.

To receive from an artistic practice its lasting gifts, we must embark on a journey of unlearning. We must rummage through our inheritance of beliefs about creativity to discover the lost treasure of what art once was and still can be. We find, in the end, that art is not about talent, originality, proficiency, or even recognition. Ultimately, art is about our own quirky genius, allowed to unfold its secrets and be expressed, at last.

Forrest Kinney began studying classical piano at fifteen, composing at sixteen, and teaching at seventeen. Since then, he has made his living as a pianist and as an educator devoted to discovering what is unique in his students.

Forrest is the composer and author of the Pattern Play series (patternplay.com), books that allow pianists to create their own music in diverse styles. He is also the author of Creativity Beyond Compare, a book about the lost nature of art that took eighteen years to finish.

With his wife, Akiko, Forrest regularly gives workshops on creativity for music teachers and their students in the United States and Canada. He is currently patenting a pocket-sized device that will allow users to type all the letters of a word at once, making typing words like playing chords on a piano. This will finally make it possible to write at the speed of speech.