The much-anticipated new book by artist and New York Times bestselling author Sally Mann about the challenges and transcendent pleasures of the creative process

Art Work, by photographer and writer Sally Mann, offers a spellbinding mix of wild and illuminating stories, practical (and some impractical) advice, and life lessons for artists and writers—or anyone interested in the creative path. Written in the same frank, fearless, and occasionally outrageous tone of her bestselling memoir, Hold Still, this new book reaffirms Mann as a unique and resonant voice for our times and is destined to become a classic.

Illustrated throughout with photographs, journal entries, and letters that bring immediacy and poignancy to the narrative, Art Work is full of thought-provoking insights about the hazards of early promise; the unpredictable role of luck; the value of work, work, work, and more hard work; the challenges of rejection and distraction; the importance of risk-taking; and the rewards of knowing why and when you say yes. In sparkling prose and thoughtfully juxtaposed visuals and ephemera, Art Work is a generous, provocative, and compulsively readable exploration of creativity by one of our most original thinkers.

"If it’s possible to learn fearlessness—or cussedness or dust-yourself-offedness or stick-to-itiveness—Sally Mann is the one who could teach it to you. Sally Mann may be the only one who could teach it to you. This book will make you brave" - author of The Comfort of Crows

"In this erudite, frank, and funny book, Mann gives us wonderful new insights into her photography and her life as an artist. Full of inspiration and sage advice, it should be required reading for young artists setting out to work in any medium" - bestselling author of A Gentleman in Moscow and The Lincoln Highway

"Highly readable … This is a book as much about the art of living as a life in art from the warm, spirited and thoughtful artist and photographer" - The Bookseller

"Entertaining, inspiring and hilariously idiosyncratic … Art Work is like looking through the 'everything drawer' in someone's kitchen ... it seems disparate and whimsical, yet everything is actually practical and necessary. Mann is showing any wannabe artist that you can't just be a dreamer, you also have to be a schemer; and you can't just peddle fairytales and daydreams, you also have to put in the grift and graft. It is a brilliant read" - Bidisha, author of The Future of Serious Art

"Candid, kickass and wise … telling eye-widening personal stories, drawing on her deep reading, and sharing letters, notebooks, and photographs, Mann pegs her rollicking mix of pragmatic guidance and electrifying discoveries to key topics … She recounts crucial moments of serendipity and misery, mistakes and breakthroughs with verve, precision, rueful self-critiques, and spirited insights … Mann is galvanic, funny and profound" - Booklist

"Entertains as much as it enlightens … Mann is a clear-eyed, self-deprecating guide, framing her many mistakes as part of a lifelong creative practice" - Publishers Weekly

"A consummate storyteller and accomplished writer, Mann uses anecdotes from her decades of experimentation and pursuit of artistic achievement to illustrate lessons such as the importance of luck to an artist’s path, knowing when to keep going and when to stop, dealing with rejection, and when to write (always)" - Library Journal