summary ofReal Artists Don’t StarveBook by Jeff Goins

first KEY POINT

You can live a creative and a prosperous life

Michelangelo, the designer of the Sistine Chapel during the Renaissance era, has been misconstrued as a starving artist and grouped with the likes of Vincent van Gogh. But an investigation of bank records by Harvard Professor Rab Hatfield revealed otherwise. Michelangelo lived a frugal life but was extremely wealthy.Henri Murger popularized the conception of artists as poor in his collection of stories titled “Scenes.” Murger was the son of a concierge and a tailor in France who grew frustrated that creative geniuses couldn’t achieve financial security. He painted artists as impoverished people who could not make money from their creative works. Today, we warn people who appear creative to contain their creativity to avoid becoming starving artists.

Mediocrity is chosen over excellence because humans desire the path of least resistance. We are risk averse. Thus, we avoid struggle, ignore our passion, and choose the popular route instead.In the following chapters, we will discover how to change this narrative. You can make a living as an artist. You can approach your work as art so that you unleash your creativity and inspire the next generation to do the same. Michelangelo's transformative influence shifted the perception of artists, elevating them from mere laborers to esteemed figures within society. Today, you have the opportunity to join the New Renaissance by studying the triumphs of accomplished creatives. Remember, each of us possesses a creative spark, and being taken seriously as an artist involves embracing innovative thinking and lifestyle choices rather than adhering to the cliché of struggling for recognition.Did you know? Michelangelo's worth is equivalent to $47 million today.