August: Inspiration

This is a picture of our front porch as I was about to sit down and work on the porch swing.

“It is a danger to wait around for an idea to occur to you.  You have to find the idea.” – Gerhard Richter

Things I love about August - my front porch swing, freshly brewed iced tea, sunglasses, driving with the windows down, playing with my dogs in the yard, and last but not least - air conditioning!

This month feels like the perfect time to focus on inspiration. As my very first Green Paint Society post (YAY!), inspiration is the beginning - the point where art starts. Also, I’m most inspired in the summer months, which is why this feels like perfect timing. While I’m not making the most art in the summer, I can feel my tank filling up with ideas as I’m out and about in the world. Hence, why I consider autumn my most “productive” season.

Lately, I’ve been reconsidering what productivity even means as an artist. Is it only when we’re making the most art? Definitely not. Finding inspiration is a necessary part of the creative process. Just because it feels more passive, it doesn’t mean it’s not important. Without ideas, there is no art.

There’s a myth amongst artists that inspiration is an elusive force we can’t control. I hate this myth. We need to actively seek out inspiration. Ideas won’t just come to us. However, sometimes it’s hard to put down our materials and go explore. It doesn’t feel like work. But it is. One could argue it’s the most important work. If us artists were to give ourselves permission to spend more time gathering ideas, we’d be better for it.

This is something I need to work on BIG TIME. Instead of forcing work when my inspiration well is empty, I need to put down my tools. And this is what I’m focusing on this August - giving myself permission to step away from my desk and open my eyes to the world around me.

This is what I’d love for you to focus on this month as well. I want finding inspiration to be an integral part of your creative process.

*My favorite sketchbook for gouache can be found here.

Journal Prompts:

  1. What is my personal definition of inspiration?

  2. Under what circumstances do I feel most inspired? Least inspired? And what changes can I make in my life to feel inspired more often?

  3. What are some myths I’ve told myself about finding inspiration? What do I know to be true about finding inspiration?

  4. Make a list of your favorite sources of inspiration and hang it up in your workspace.

Sketchbook Prompts:

  1. Visit somewhere in your hometown you’ve never been and bring your sketchbook (or camera if there’s nowhere to sit). Illustrate an object or scene from this place.

  2. Reinterpret a work by another artist in your own style. (The more different their style is from yours, the better)

  3. Illustrate an object or scene from the best vacation you’ve ever taken.

  4. Find an example of interior design you love, and illustrate a piece for that room.

Assignment:

Go to an art museum this month. If you don’t have one near your hometown, visit one online. For online visits, check out this article on 10 of The World’s Best Virtual Museum an Art Gallery Tours. Afterwards, find a way to reward yourself for getting out and doing this for your art. Ice cream, perhaps?

Fun Finds:

Since this is my very first post, I’m offering my Burst of Inspiration guide for free as a way to celebrate the start of the Green Paint Society. I hope the GPS is something that continues to grow and flourish with us as artists! Happy creating!

Nicole Cicak