The Entrepreneurial Artist: Lessons from Highly Successful Creatives

by Aaron P. Dworkin

Overview

In The Entrepreneurial Artist: Lessons from Highly Successful Creatives, Aaron Dworkin offers an engaging, practical guide to achieving artistic fulfillment, both personally and professionally. Based on the accomplishments of Shakespeare, Mozart, and several contemporary creatives, these lessons will help you realize your goals—no matter your medium. Among those Dworkin personally interviewed for this book are Emmy-winning actor Jeff Daniels, Tony-award winning choreographer Bill T. Jones, Grammy award-winning musician Wynton Marsalis, and Pulitzer Prize winner Lin-Manuel Miranda, among others. The stories of these twelve remarkable individuals come alive with lessons of love, loss, despair, sacrifice, perseverance, and triumph.

Some of the artist-entrepreneur takeaways explored in this book include:

• Build partnerships—with peers, patrons, and sponsors
• Embrace diversity
• Expand your focus
• Allow your work to mature

Whether one is an aspiring student artist in search of practical tools to build a sustainable career, or a veteran seeking reinvention, The Entrepreneurial Artist offers insights—well-tested, unusual, or innovative—that are meaningful for every kind of creative.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781538129531
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	12/04/2019
Pages:	184
Sales rank:	647,022
Product dimensions:	5.60(w) x 8.60(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Aaron P. Dworkin is an acclaimed multi-media performing artist, social entrepreneur, and educator. He is professor of arts leadership and entrepreneurship at University of Michigan’s School of Music, Theatre & Dance and Professor of Entrepreneurial Studies at UofM’s School of Business. Dworkin is the founder of ArtsShare.com—a global marketplace for the arts—as well as The Sphinx Organization, whose mission is to transform lives through the power of diversity in the arts.

A 2005 MacArthur Fellow and President Obama’s first appointment to the National Council on the Arts, Dworkin is also the recipient of the Royal Philharmonic Society Honorary Membership, Crain’s 40 Under 40 and Who’s Who Awards, and an AT&T Excellence in Education Award.

Dworkin lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan

Table of Contents

An Introduction of Uncommon Rhythm ix

William Shakespeare: The Upstart 1

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: "Loved by God" 11

Jeff Daniels: The Hard Work 21

Bill T. Jones: Dancing through Doubt 31

Lin-Manuel Miranda: Taking His Shot 43

Rachel Barton Pine: Playing through Adversity 55

Damien Sneed: Balance Is a Boon 67

Lee Greenwood: Proud to Be an American 77

Marin Alsop: Conducting Dedication 89

Damon Gupton: An Artistic Nomad 99

Chip Davis: Tinkering with a Steamroller 111

Midori: Three Dauntless Violins 121

Wynton Marsalis: The Box and the Horn 133

Conclusion: Da Capo Al Fine 145

Notes 151

Index 153

About the Author 159

Editorial Reviews

The arts are not just a passion, they are a career. Aaron Dworkin builds a bridge between them with inspiring interviews and insights from the best of the best. It’s a must read for anyone who imagines dedicating their life to music and the arts.

Gustavo Dudamel

What would happen if we taught the most creative people, musicians, artists, writers, and the like, to be entrepreneurs? In The Entrepreneurial Artist, Professor Aaron Dworkin answers the question by examining how renowned artists have become successful both artistically and commercially. The Entrepreneurial Artist uses real case studies to identify how they achieved their goals, both creative and financial, and how you can do the same. I recommend this book for artists and entrepreneurs of all types who want to get more out of their career.

Jeff DeGraff

A pleasingly practical handbook of success that never forgets the inspiration, the soul and the fire that lie at the heart of the true artist entrepreneur. This book will surely be an inspiration for many generations to come.

Marshall Marcus

I’ve long known about Aaron Dworkin’s great gifts to the art world—his own creative composing and performing; his inspirational teaching; his powerful non-profit work. Perhaps his biggest legacy will be this book: a tactical guide for musicians and artists to show them that the same skills and habits that have helped them to make their art so special are also what can will help them make their way—creatively and effectively—through business world

Ari Weinzweig

Aaron Dworkin has a profound commitment to Humankind; and the Creative Forces that dwell within Us. That Commitment manifests dynamically and inspirationally, in this book and the work he engages; producing entrepreneurial and creative artistry, that is a gift for us all.

Delroy Lindo

A fascinating insider’s look at the traits we share that compel us to create, full of invaluable guidance on how to turn our creative impulses into successes.

Benj Pasek and Justin Paul

Aaron Dworkin has made his life his art form, and he lives it with honesty, dedication and creativity. He thinks of music as a human invention to help us understand ourselves, our environment, and others. Music was invented to serve society, and Aaron is living proof of that commitment.

Yo-Yo Ma

Inspiring and informative insight into the leading entrepreneurial artists who have transformed our world. A must-read for anyone interested in living a creative life!

Josh Linkner

Bravo to Aaron Dworkin. He has pulled together a great set of life and business lessons from what some might think are unexpected places. However from my own life’s work I know that artists and their experiences are a rich resource for many learnings: productivity, teamwork, creativity and so much more. This book is full of excellent, useful information. It is also a great deal of fun to read.

Robert L. Lynch

Dworkin is dropping plenty of knowledge and wisdom in these pages. I recognized early in my career how critical it was for me to not wait for the phone to ring and create work for myself. The age of the artist/entrepreneur is upon us.

LeVar Burton

Aaron uses fourteen creative individuals to distill the complexities of success in ways that are both accessible and inspiring. I am grateful for this contribution to the arts sector and beyond!

Deborah Borda

Aaron Dworkin catapults us into the world of extraordinary artists. His profiles challenge, inspire and calls on all of us to excel - whether we are artisan farmers, struggling artists or investors of innovation. We have much to learn from the arts!

David Mas Masumoto

Professor Dworkin combines the fascinating stories of acclaimed artists with constructive steps on how to turn great ideas into reality; reminding us that some of the most influential entrepreneurs are artists.

Jane Chu