I am excited to announce that I have just signed another book contract with Routledge! I am writing this book with my friend and colleague, Mark Allen. We’ve been talking about this for years and are just so happy that it is finally coming to fruition!

The title of the book is (tentatively): Art and the Flourishing of the Ordinary. (We may change it slightly or add a subtitle.)

Our manuscript is due January 2027 so we have our work cut off for us during this next year!

Here is a short synopsis of what we hope to do:

Our book seeks to shed light on the elusive nature of art and explore why the engagement with and appreciation of art is important for human flourishing. Our inclusion of the “ordinary” is two-fold: ordinary people and ordinary artforms. The first focus is a discussion of ways in which the general public can interact with art by better understanding its most essential qualities and the role that common sensibilities play in the appreciation of art. It is also a critique of the inaccessibility of art over the past century—both culturally and conceptually—as well as a critique of the role that fame, fortune, and education play into society’s perception of what good art is. The second is to see the power that ordinary artforms have in our daily lives. When we let art spill out of the frame, the museum, and the music hall, we see the unique ability of art to expose human suffering and cultivate freedom. More than this, we realize that art is not just something that we view externally, but something that we experience internally in the way we shape our own lives and in the way we let it draw us beyond the material world. We envision readers studying our book at a library, tucking it under the arm on a museum visit, or even bringing it along for a stroll around a park, ready to offer guidance in everyday encounters with art.