Where do you turn when looking for inspiring ideas for creating & making art? Artworks are not produced by a computer, vacumn, or a microwave. For me, artworks can be inspired by my dreams, interactions of experiences, and the relationship of creative ideas & feelings expressed in some form.
Art is my passion, I hope you will find Art as a way to express yourself to others by asking a few questions.
- How can I work through or solve this ideas using ART?
- How can I use ART to show the things I learned?
- How can I use ART to persuade people about my passions in life?
- How can I use Art to brainstorm new ideas that might impact our planet?
- How can I use humor and spontaneity and even mistakes to create ART?
Pracitce away from the computer is my motto -- and should be yours too
Yes, it really helps you to keep a sketchbook to draw, record your observations and yes, practice your drawing skills. For me, I enjoy learning different techniques - painting is my favorite. I can draw for hours, "practice" is my motto. I love ART as a way I can express myself in so many ways.
Maybe art students of today may find a balance of inspiration and motivation by a real time of memories and observations of their surrounding ( not viewed on youtube). Marc Chagall reflected many of his artworks from childhood memories of living in a small Russian village and imagery from reading Russian folk stories. While teaching third graders, this was a great inspiration for artworks based on asking questions & recording family history and their own cultural and personal background into a time-line painting. It's amazing to me how children can remember very early events about their lives as toddlers and apply colors & symbols into their artworks.
Immerse yourself in culture
I have to admit that I'm all in using websites for viewing many diverse kinds of artworks... The work of others creates a world of cultures, provides artists not only with images & facts about art, but also with the attitude that there is no "right " or "wrong" way to make art.
I am inspired by my love of traveling to European cites searching through museums viewing artworks from other artists as inspiration for my current artworks. Claude Monet was inspired to create a series of paintings finding inspiration by observing the changing effects of light on his garden and lily pond because a single painting could not express all that he loved about nature. I had the honor of visiting the American Landscape Museum several years ago seeing the home & studio of Claude Monet & experiencing how your surroundings can have a definite effect on what influences an artist.
Learn from the Greats
Claude Monet, Mary Cassatt and van Gogh were apart of a group of artists that studied & loved culture of the Japanese through their wood prints & paintings too. Picasso and Braque were inspired from visiting Africa and were inspired by African masks & sculptures. One of my favorite artist to acknowledge is Henry Matisse, he layed in bed and used a series of images in his mind at the age of 70 + to cut out and create vivid, colorful collages.
I'm amazed by the invention of the camera,it allowed Degas to compose his series of race horsing paintings into what we call a snapshot. Today photography has developed into its own artworks with the aid of photoshop & other online tools enjoyed by millions of artists.
Most of all, artists are still inspired by drawing and painting from nature. I have visited Milan, Italy & viewed Leonardo da Vinci inspiration from volumes of sketchbooks filled with his drawings of inventions, drawings of people, and nature . Yes, it was an amazing experience seeing his " Last Supper" and hearing the story how it has been preserved through the ages.
I must say working with any media - whether it is painting, or just pencil and paper---- it just sparks a sense of wholeness within me.
So just take a little advice from "the Art Mouse" be yourself & discover your inner self. I wouldn't want to be anyone else, but me! Keep creating your ART!
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