PENGUIN Mess: The Manual of Accidents and Mistakes

I purchased this book along with Wreck this Journal on recommendation of my psychology student friend who suggested it for me as I do suffer with minor obsessive compulsive disorder in the sense that I need things to be organized and perfect. This book is very similar to Wreck this Journal, as a matter of fact some of the pages are identical, the front of the book is more about general destruction, while the latter parts of the book are more about exploration of textures, materials, different paints, colours, techniques and also tells the user to reference people, places, things etc. There is a lot of general doodling, but usually with some sort of instruction - ie photo of landscape with instructions to draw a storm of some description. I am not looking forward to burying it for 3 days! I must say! I will probably do that when I am done with it. I love that this book is a bit more educational to artistic techniques, people etc. The beginning of the book speaks about an interview with a Dutch Sailor summing up the work of Bas Jan Ader referencing a piece called "Broken Fall" which shows a man bouncing up and down swinging on a branch over a creek. The sailor references that "moment of transcendence when you leave everything behind and leap into the unknown". I feel this book encapsulates that statement very well. There is a lot of experimentation and tasks that do not have a particularly obvious outcome, and while not dangerous, the book challenges your views on what art or perfection is. I have done a few pages and in describing them verbally it sounds like I am destroying a perfectly good book, but actually when I look at pages there are little bits and pieces on some pages I love, some I hate. But the unknown has become known and I have referenced a lot of Ader's work, who i have become very intrigued with. This book has become a permanent fixture with me along with Wreck this Journal. I find rather than pulling out a phone and going into my own little world on a bus, train etc this is a fun way to pass the time. Ive had several strangers ask me about the books and I've happily filled them in. I would recommend this book to just about anyone. Some pages are fun to do with younger children. I feel it would be particularly good for an art student or fan. I haven't got to the pages yet, but I am looking forward to pages exploring textiles and texture. Its great fun, and I love it.

Ce livre est tout à fait génial.Je le recommande à toutes les personnes créatives. En tout cas je ne suis pas du tout déçue

Un libro dal concept fantastico, che non solo ti permette di commettere errori, ma ti spinge a farli (è proprio questo infatti l'obiettivo), senza sensi di colpa. Ci sono moltissime idee e spunti per viaggiare con la fantasia senza doverci pensare troppo. Nonostante lo abbia comprato molto tempo fa devo ancora "sbloccarmi", lo consiglio vivamente a chi ha bisogno di "sciogliersi" e scrollarsi di dosso il senso di dovere e di perfezione.

I got this for my 13 and 14 year old niece for xmas and they loved it! Lot's of fun activities inside. I will purchase these again for my own children.

Sometimes watercolour painting can be infuriating because the paint never does quite what I want it to. This book is teaching me a different perspective - art does not always have to be about the perfect execution of an idea, sometimes the randomness of a 'messy bit' brings energy, freedom, or something else to a work that cannot be repeated and captures a moment in time. Children will love the anarchy of defying conventions as this book encourages, but it's not necessarily a children's book. Frequently an exercise cites the name of an artist or art movement for further research and this opens doors to learn about a world of modern art that we might not otherwise hear of. Add to this a new found freedom that an adult artist might learn from it and you have a book for all ages. It's great fun trying out the exercises, even if some of them are too off the wall for me I'm having a go in the spirit of challenging my inhibitions. Some reviewers have said the book would be better if spiral bound but I disagree. Sure it would be tidier that way, but that's not in the spirit of the book. The binding is of good quality so although mine is bulging it is not falling apart. If it does then I already have a plan to spiral bind it myself, by hand, with an untidy Heath-Robinson approach.