Where Does Your Artistic Inspiration Originate?
Updated: May 3, 2018
I often get asked: Where do you come up with your ideas?
There is no end to where one can gather inspiration! More often than not, many people will say nature.
Nature has a pretty wide scope and at times can be more complicated than an inspirational object need be.
When we see something in nature that catches our intention, something deep inside of us has chosen you to take note. My daughter (Sarah) was out for a walk earlier this week...a misty, foggy, spring day in Nova Scotia, Canada... and noticed the buds popping open on the maple trees along the side of the road. Fortunately she had the smarts to take a few photographs with her mobile phone, and lucky for me...she shared!
Ok, so now I have spent too much time admiring this photo and I find myself pondering a few things.
Why does this appeal to me?
How does it make me feel?
Would it work in other media? And...how could I do it in glass?
It looks kind of pink and unexpected.
The water droplets are really cool.
The background is blured, greens and pinkish.
The branch is contrasting.
How does it appear so bright on such a dull day?
One does not have to try to recreate the whole scene to be inspired by the object. Sometimes it is the "little take aways" that can make all the difference.
For example, next time I want to make something look delicately saturated with water, I could use mini glass nuggets in a row. Or, I could use the colour combination of the pinks and light yellow tones together for the soft tones that they provide.
To me, inspiration does not mean to copy something and reproduce it but to observe and apply my own interpretation of the "little take aways" in glass.