How do you decide what you’ll paint next?
If you are new to the painting world, you may not know yet what you are passionate about painting. I feel the subject you choose has to cause a stir in you to want to dive in and paint. However, we all know that this doesn’t always happen. When I first began watercolor painting, I took workshops. Taking workshops really helps you see through other artists’ eyes, and you become more aware of your creative heart. Soon I saw things I wanted to paint everywhere I looked! If you are a beginner artist, you should take the liberty to try every subject, and you will eventually find the subjects that will bring you joy. I take many, many photographs either with my big Nikon camera or my cell phone.
I paint primarily from photographs. I have enjoyed Plein Air painting in the past, and is something I would like to do more of. Painting in nature is so nourishing to your soul. When I was raising my kids, I would take them with me and give them a paintbrush, palette and paper. Because I enjoy painting shadows, photographs work better for me because as the sun moves, so do the shadows, and I am not a fast painter. Most of the time, I would start a painting outside and finish it inside my studio. However you choose to paint, make sure it brings you joy!
Four Inspirations for Creating Artwork
Throughout the years, I’ve learned that there are several inspirations of creating artwork. For me there are 4 categories: Sellable art, Commissioned art, Juried art and Personal art.
1). Sellable Art:
I was an exhibiting member of a gallery where I painted art that locals were interested in. I painted everything local, because that is what sold One subject was of an old church from 5 different viewpoints, and I sold all 5. I took my camera all over town taking resource photos. I even took slivers of brick from the ground of an old historic building…shhh…to incorporate into a painting to make it more authentic and interesting. There’s something to be said for the fact that people are proud of where they live. Local art sells!
Have you ever heard someone say “That would be a great piece over our couch…it matches the colors perfectly!”? As an artist, it makes you roll your eyes, but if the customer is not an investor that is how a majority of people shop for paintings, much different than the investors’ viewpoint or a true appreciator of art. I once heard a lecture from an artist that educated us on incorporating the new colors of the year, like interior designers, into your paintings. What a concept!
2). Commissioned Art:
If you work as a commissioned artist, there are 2 main things that drive you…income and pleasing the customer. I do commissioned artwork. Most are pet portraits of which I am a huge animal lover. I am often asked to paint a commission on a subject that doesn’t interest me so much, but I usually agree if I think I could make a beautiful piece from the subject. One of the struggles of painting commissions is often times the customer hands you their photo, and the lighting is bad or photo is out of focus. I prefer to take my own photos, but often times that is not possible. I’ve had commissioned work that I fight to finish because of the challenges from bad photo resources. To save you a future headache, truly look at the client’s photo. Sometimes you need to show them an example of a good photo resource with excellent lighting for them to realize the difference. I have done this on many occasions.
3). Personal Art:
I had a lot of beautiful pieces that continued to decorate the gallery walls, wondering “Why aren’t these selling”? I realized that those fit into another category…personal art. Once I had kids, I started using them as subjects. However, when painting figures that are too personal, customers don’t envision them hanging on their walls. I soon learned that some of my greatest art pieces were perfect to be juried into shows, but not pieces that typically sell. I still painted them because I got so much joy out of working on them. This brings me to the next subject; Juried Art.
4). Juried Art:
I like to enter juried shows. It is a thing that every artist should try. You develop a thicker skin for sure, but it is also a great way to put yourself out there and learn to mingle with other artists. It is also very gratifying when your painting is chosen to hang beside some of your favorite well-known artists. I feel many jurors want to see pieces that are unusual and stand out, are clever compositions, a great combination of elements and values, and overall makes them stop and study the piece further before moving on to the next. It’s a great motivation to get out of your comfort zone and really be creative. I often plan on entering a show just to use it as a goal to finish a painting so that I can meet their deadline.
What inspires you to create art? Do you have another category to add to the 4 mentioned above?
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