Inspiration

Hello again fellow readers,

Today I want to share with you what inspires me to work on my art. Being inspired is a big part of working on a piece. You have to know what you're going to do in order to do it. This may seem like an obvious statement, but many times you really have to think of what you want to work on to get started. Finding inspiration is, I believe, the most important part of art.

Whenever I have no idea what I want to work on, but I feel the urge to work on something, I use these four main sources to find my inspiration:

1. The Internet
2. Supplies I have, or a buying
3. Nature
4. Art books

The Internet: The Internet is a big place where you can find pictures of just about anything. Anytime I want to draw something this is the first place I look into. I usually start out doing a Google search of things I like to draw and add the word art to them. This is also the best way to find different ways and styles to work on. I may already know what I want to draw, but don't know how I want to do it. The art section on Pinterest is also a great place to look. I have been inspired by other artist's styles or subjects by browsing Pinterest.

I was browsing Google images in search of a butterfly to draw and came upon this. The original picture was all black and white but I really wanted to use my oil pastels and this is the end result.

The inspiration for this sketch comes from browsing the Art section on Pinterest.

Supplies: Yes, it is true. Supplies can provide a source of inspiration for working on your creations. Whenever I go to Michael's or other craft supply stores, I always come out with an idea of what to draw/paint by looking at the supplies they sell. Supplies can give you an idea of how you want to do your piece because say you really want to make a painting of some flowers. When you go to the store and see watercolor paints you start visualizing how you can do them using the watercolors. Supply shopping really helps inspire different styles of drawing/painting.

Nature: We live in a beautiful planet. I live out in the country and there are lots of beautiful things to see just by stepping outside. I love to draw/paint nature themed pieces and I get inspired every time I see a nice flower or a beautiful sunset. Pictures of nature are also a great source of inspiration. One of my cousins takes some of the most beautiful pictures of nature I have used some to work on my pieces.

 

This drawing is based on one of my cousin's pictures of an almond blossom.

Art Books: Art books are also a great source of inspiration. You don't have to follow  step-by-step instructions that they give either. Some of the pictures in art books are amazing, and I have used several for my own pieces.

I made this drawing from a bird drawing book. The colorful birds really inspired me to make a piece from this book.

Inspiration can come from many other places too. Think of what inspires you and have fun working on your art.