In Praise of the Creative Spirit with Peter Clothier

Peter Clothier Interview
Read Peter's creativity-inspiring responses to questions about his writing process, inspiration, and persisting in the creative life in this exclusive Creative Careers in the Arts interview.

Peter Clothier is a long time observer of the contemporary art world, and a widely published writer. His publications include fiction, poetry, and a memoir, as well as "David Hockney" (a monograph), and a collection of political essays, "The Bush Diaries." Published last year, his book "Persist: In Praise of the Creative Spirit in a World Gone Mad with Commerce", addresses the predicament of the creative individual in a culture in which celebrity and money trump talent and quality of work. His newest book is "Mind Work: Shedding Delusions on the Path to the Creative Core."

A graduate of Cambridge University, Clothier came to the U.S. in 1964 for the Writer’s Workshop at the University of Iowa. Graduating with a PH.D. in Comparative Literature, he came to L.A. in 1968 to teach at USC. He became Dean and Director of Otis Art Institute, and was Dean of Fine and Communication Arts at Loyola-Marymount University before leaving academia in 1986 to devote full time to writing. He has been happily unemployed since then and describes himself as a recovering academic.

He received fellowships from the Rockefeller Foundation and the National Endowment for the Humanities and was honored for his contribution to the arts at the L.A. Artcore 17th Annual Awards. He has appeared on numerous radio and television shows, and has served in a leadership capacity in The ManKind Project.

His daily writing practice includes two blogs, The Buddha Diaries and Persist: The Blog. For more information on Peter and his work please visit PeterClothier.com.

Peter Clothier's Articles & Interviews

Mind Work Interview with Peter Clothier
By Chris Dunmire
Intimate Portraits, Authenticity, and Shedding Delusions on the Path to the Creative Core.

Today Is Thine: Tempus Fugit
By Peter Clothier
Excerpted from Mind Work: Shedding Delusions on the Path to the Creative Core.

Not Just a Number
By Peter Clothier
Excerpted from Mind Work: Shedding Delusions on the Path to the Creative Core.

Making Space
By Peter Clothier
The writer stands to benefit as much as the artist or the musician from the empty mind.

Heeding the Call
By Peter Clothier
Each of us, I firmly believe, has that mission, that sense of purpose.

Nurturing...the Artist Within
By Peter Clothier
Article based on lecture for a group of art teachers engaged in a summer workshop at Texas Christian University.

"Persist" Excerpt: The Big Lie
By Peter Clothier
Excerpted from Persist: In Praise of the Creative Spirit in a World Gone Mad with Commerce.