Paintings very rarely do justice to the subjects they represent, but they do serve as nice reminders that we can use to go back in our minds to a special time. My wife and I went to Anacortes last year for her birthday. We stayed in a small and relaxing Airbnb, ate at a fantastic Italian restaurant (complete with accordion player), and spent the morning searching the local park beach for shells and colorful rocks. This view was down at one end of the beach, prompting me to take a snap of it for an eventual painting. With a little bit of imagination, I can feel the breeze and smell the salt water, reliving the peaceful moment.
Psst. Hey. All you workaholic artists out there, let me tell you about a time I had some easy artistic inspiration without burning myself out…
When was the last time you took a break from bending over your easel and decided to go outside? Believe it or not, there’s more to life than putting paint to canvas or pencil to paper and maybe it will just get you excited to share it -visually! – with the world.
A good friend invited me on his birthday trip to Suncadia, Washington a couple of years ago. We golfed (poorly) in the sun, played some fun games, and had all sorts of great conversations. Not only that, but we went down this enormous outdoor staircase that led us to a running stream where we spent too much time skipping rocks and challenging each other’s throwing accuracy.
On our way back up the hill, I saw a beautifully simple little sight. Sunlight was filtering through the branches of a small crop of trees sitting on a tiny hill. Something about it hit me in a way that I wasn’t expecting. It spoke of lazy outdoor days, enjoying the sun’s warmth when there’s still a little chill in the air. Being without paint and unprepared to set up for a painting, I snapped a quick picture for use later. Being that I had some artistic inspiration, I was determined to paint this piece.
The reference image.
Laying Down the Right Foundation
When I arrived home I decided to set to work on the painting. I selected a small canvas (10×10 inches) that would serve to display the setting with enough detail and impact, though not overwhelm the viewer in its size. I really felt the small canvas would help to serve the simple nature of the scene, not overcomplicating things with massive presence. I also just wanted to work small.
I had been working a lot with limited palettes at the time of this painting. A limited palette is an approach to painting that encourages the artist to choose as few paints as necessary for the project. Color is very relative and this creates a framework for the artist to work simply. I chose Yellow Ochre, Burnt Sienna, and Phthalo Blue, along with a White (can’t remember if it is Titanium or Zinc) and Raw Umber. This allowed me to get a good range of colors without getting overwhelmed by a huge selection of paint options. I often use Winsor & Newton oil paint (they have a wide range of qualities that can fit any person’s budget).
Getting at it quickly was pretty important for me. I wanted to really make sure that the painting had a good amount of life to it and I truly believe that the more free a painter’s strokes are, the easier it becomes to imbue visual interest. The way we use our paintbrushes can absolutely communicate how we are feeling, in subconscious ways that even unaware viewers can perceive. It’s like talking on the phone in a good mood versus a bad mood. It can be heard in the voice, despite any of the word choice.
Using a stiff brush allowed me to get some nice textured and lively strokes on the canvas. Having that right amount of tension from the hand to the brush to the spring of the canvas imbues the painting with a personality that may not come through in just the colors and composition. I ended up being very happy with the way the preliminary layers were coming together.
Overall, I wanted to make sure that my enjoyment of the outdoors on that trip to Suncadia would come through in the painting. I always seem to work more enthusiastically when I experience the artistic inspiration that quiet and peaceful moments can provide – it would be very satisfying to communicate and share that expression with others.
Before I added more details. Maybe I could have stopped here!
Things that Did Not Work
Despite all of the early artistic successes with the piece, I didn’t know when to stop. That’s a huge learning curve for painters. Maybe it’s weird to hear an artist question their judgment on their own blog that’s part of their website where they run their business. I think it’s more important to be honest about how I was feeling regarding my work. I just didn’t know how to maintain the freshness of the painting, as I added more detail and more layers of paint.
Let this be a lesson to you! And me. I don’t think my painting is bad, by any means, but I do wonder if it could have been better if I had left it alone or been more selective with my “improvements”.
The colors were also a learning experience for me. While I am fond of the painting, I do think that some of the colors were really challenging. The thing about direct sunlight is that it can reflect off of surfaces, such as grass, and become very bright. However, in doing so, it loses a lot of the intensity of color that we hope to find in paintings. So, there’s a choice that the artist has to make, which is between adherence to realism and adherence to visual interest. I’m not sure there is a right answer, but I do wonder if I chose the correct path.
One technical thing that can add to the difficulty in painting with enough color intensity is the photo reference. Great photos are the result of a good photographer and a great edit. Cameras don’t work exactly like our eyes do, so there can often be a big difference between the way we see something in person and the way it comes to us through a photo capture. Contrast, brightness, intensity, and even perspective can be altered in a way that is just not as satisfying as what we are seeing in person.
If you are experiencing any issues like these that are getting in the way of communicating your artistic inspiration, I would recommend trying to find ways to introduce saturated and intense colors. Just try it in a few places and you might find yourself thinking entirely different about your painting. You may even be encouraged to increase the vibrancy of all your colors.
The Big Finale
The artistic inspiration came to fruition, eventually, when I put down my paint and brushes and called it. Happily, I walked away from the painting feeling like I had accomplished something decent and learned a lot along the way. That really is what I hope for most when I paint, that I will learn something. And most times, I do.
So, I added texture, color, balance, harmony, and eventually my stamp of approval. I do not think it is my greatest painting, by any means, but I do look at it occasionally and find myself studying aspects of it, with a grateful heart and a happy smile.
Here is a short series of three phases of the process. You can see how I started, began to adjust my colors, and then did some final adjustments to bring some more interest back in. Scroll back to the reference to see the changes I made, the things I de-emphasized, and the creative choices I made in a journey to simplify and economize my colors. You might also notice how my limited palette did in replicating the original colors.
While the first image in the process has a nice earthy quality to it and a good balance in the values, I do recognize the polish of the final image and how it conveys the textures and features with more crispness. I think I could balance my strokes a bit more, in hopes to keep that casual feel that is happening in the first image. I also could stand to control my use of white a bit.
So, there’s another Art Story from me, giving you a little background on one of my paintings. I’ve always enjoyed getting some behind the scenes looks at how people work and what they think of what they’ve created (warts and all). I hope you enjoyed this post and will find yourself in the midst of artistic inspiration sometimes soon.
As I look out my window I can see small birds flitting through the branches of the tree outside and hear them singing their short little songs. My wife just received a bouquet of blooming pink tulips that graces our dinner table (where I’m working right now) and it brings a beautiful splash of color to everything. Spring is just over a week away and I’m already beginning to feel the inspiration it brings.
The sun is out and the ideas are percolating. Old plans are being swept up and pieced into new plans. Several new projects are underway, steadily developing and bringing me fresh excitement. There is a feeling of refreshment in the air that trumps any temporary January motivations regarding new year’s resolutions and words of the year. This is when things really start to take shape.
Am I alone? I can’t be the only person who finds this season to be so renewing. While the year can hold so many surprises, there is something about Spring that gives me the feeling that I hold potential in my hands. There is a certainty to it.
Does Spring hold that sway over you? Do you feel invigorated? Are you working on anything that makes you feel alive right now?
When is it a good time to slow down? No, I’m really asking.
This Friday I will be turning the ripe old age of 38 and I haven’t ever related more with the idea of time flying. Life is short. Here today, gone tomorrow. Insert other meaningful idioms and figures of speech here.
Officially transferring from my mid-thirties to my late-thirties means I’m not feeling so young anymore. What does all of this have to do with art and painting and being a creative person?
Filling Our Days Up
As creative people, we can often fill up our days with a variety of activities. Burgeoning artists are most likely working a regular job while pursuing their personal work. Established artists are juggling the business side of things, preparing for their next show or series. Many artists are running their lives through a custom schedule that sometimes needs tweaking. Furthermore, we live in a busy society with myriad distractions and the potential for falling behind on things. You might end up with a feeling of having to catch up on stuff, power through, go from A to B to C, or any number of important or seemingly important activities.
This takes a toll on our time, for sure, but it also does something internally. Our minds start to develop a sense of forward-thinking. We set end goals, due dates, and other measurable progress markers as helpful ways of organizing our lives. These tools enable us to succeed in our pursuits, to learn from our mistakes, and to generate a process of operating that will hopefully lead us to efficiency and results. Let’s not forget, though, that as humans we are bound to screw things up. One of the biggest regrets of people near the end of their lives is that they were too wrapped up in their work.
Are You Missing Out on the Moment?
Creative people need clear heads. And they need moments of stillness. Moving from task to task and viewing life as a series of hoops to jump through creates a game out of life. Furthermore, it creates self-focused people. When I was younger, I would look forward to going to a friend’s house to watch football or play a board game. Why do I now think of these events as interruptions? My conclusion is that I have come to value my time more than I used to. Which begs the question: am I using my time wisely?
You see, a person who values their time over sharing it with friends and family should take a good look at themselves and see how they use their time. In our day, a constant distraction in our lives is the smart phone. I’ve definitely prioritized my smart phone over seeing people or doing constructive things. Of course, I could justify it by saying that I needed the decompression that it gives. But in reality, is it actually performing any sort of decompression? Usually, because my mind never gets a break, it just adds to feeling of busyness.
Art projects, jobs, writing, making dinner, doing chores, taking transportation, checking Instagram, scrolling on Facebook, reading headlines, and everything else I fill my day with has to be taking a toll. So, what do I do about it? Find what is missing in that list and add it. Find what I don’t like and cut it. In other words, if there are things I can do to improve my quality of life, I need to identify them and make time for them.
A New List
For me, a new list would include the things that help me provide for my family. That includes work and chores. Second, I would be greatly aided by paying attention to my mental, physical, and spiritual health. For example, I can make time to read meaningful things, exercise my body, and practice stillness. These things can be overlooked because the results are not immediate – they happen over time. But what are if not our minds, bodies, and souls?
Eliminating the fat for our new list can have a tremendous effect on our well-being. For instance, cutting Facebook can lead to less mindless anger, frustration, and jealousy. You don’t have to live your life comparing yourself to everybody else. You have that kind of control!
Everything else can fall in place. The work can get done with more emphasis on quality, not desperation. Social life can begin to flourish again, no longer taking a backseat to selfish ambition. After all, it’s not good to isolate oneself. Taking a little time to make a new list will not only challenge your perspective, but also give your accomplishments more weight.
So, yeah, I’m turning 38. I’m inclined to say that it came quick, but I think it’s just surprising to consider my age. It’s not that time goes really fast, it’s that time goes at all. It’s a reminder of that. And hopefully it can encourage me to take stock of my life and express my gratitude for the many blessings I have.
