A Different Kind of Painting Inspiration

  

 

 

"Fractured" Reminds me of sunset light shining through tall grasses.

Last January I saw that Nicholas Wilton's free course called the"Creative Awakening Challenge" was going to be offered in February.

My art making plate was already dangerously full last winter, but this class was exactly what I had been looking for. I had been searching for awhile for another way to approach my art making and Nicholas promised that his 20 minute a day "Bloom" practice could really transform the way I made my art.

I had never allowed myself to paint this type of sadness before, it helped me.

 

The class was only for 25 days and when I read that we would be making paintings too and not just listening and observing, I squeezed a little more space onto that overflowing plate and signed up.  

"Feelings of Hope" I felt compelled to start with pink and green.

 

Essentially, Nicholas was teaching us how to tap into our own feelings as inspiration for creativity. This may sound very odd to many of you, but this was never a topic discussed in my time at art school. 

 

Design, Value, Color theory, drawing skills, all the essential building blocks were covered but never anything about how to use emotion as inspiration, this was very new territory for me. I suppose they just expect that you already know how to do this, but I honestly didn't, of course I learned how in the sense of using color and design to reflect a mood, yes, but not tapping into what kind of marks and color choices reflect me.

"Headache" I tried to capture how awful I felt that day.

Imagine using NO photo references, just sitting with an emotion, choosing a color and putting it down on the paper however you want. Then choosing how to respond to that color and continuing for 20 minutes or longer if you wish, but only 20 minutes were required. 

"Feeling Stressed" The work load was overwhelming me.

  

It was fascinating over those 25 days to see what colors I chose, what marks I loved making. I had no idea how much I loved cadmium orange as an exclamation mark of color, or how just the movement of scribbling with a colored pencil could feel so good and then the satisfaction of spreading thick acrylic paint over it all with a palette knife.  I could use any materials I wanted, I used acrylic metallic inks that I rarely use, it was so much fun!  

"Feeling a Little Blue" I love this painting so much.

I chose to make small paintings on paper, some of them amazed me with their power or beauty, others were not that great, but it didn't matter. The point was to practice gaining confidence in connecting to my own inner north star.

These paintings are the first seven I made in order day by day so you can see how varied the images were. I certainly wasn't sure what I was doing at first, but I did figure out a format eventually. For me, 5 x 7 inches was a good paper size and after the first four, I changed from painting in my sketchbook to heavier 185lb watercolor paper.

"Constrained and Contained" An image from a dream that morning. 

All of this exploration involved making abstract art and after 25 days of trying this type of creating, I was interested in figuring out how to take what I learned and combine it with my usual style of realism, but I will save that post for another time, so until then, challenge yourself to try a different type of inspiration for making your art, you might surprise yourself.

Happy Creating! 

>^-^< 

Tina 

 p.s. If you are interested in learning more about Nicholas Wilton, his website is:www.art2life.com  This link sends you to the Sunday Bloom tab where he posts weekly insights about art making.

He also has a YouTube channel called Art2Life 

 

Autumn Walk in the Park

 

"Autumn Walk in the Park" ©2025

 

In my last blog post I mentioned that I hoped to use the small 3.50 x 2.50 inch paintings in my sketchbook as inspiration in painting larger artworks.

I rarely paint fall landscapes, so I made a goal to make several in my sketchbook this year. Out of that group, this little mini painting really captured a fall mood, so I decided to try painting it larger and on canvas. 

 

Small, but has a mighty big mood.

 

I have to admit, in the end I couldn't resist the the pull of the referring back to the photo. Which is a really good inspiration point and nothing wrong with using it, I just hoped to get closer to that wonderful expressiveness that lives in these little paintings.

 

October 19, 2025 photo

To be fair, my larger 7 x 5 inch painting isn't an exact copy of the photo either and that is exactly what I am striving to do, create an interpretation that is mine but still hopefully expresses why I thought this moment was worth painting that other people will resonate with too. 

 

"Autumn Walk in the Park" ©2025

 

I believe that what the camera captures doesn't always compare to what the mind's eye sees. I may not be able to step very far from my references yet, but I will keep trying because think there is an important skill there for me to learn. 

If you find you are feeling stuck in the same old, same old in creating, think of a small way to push your boundaries and feel that excitement of exploring the unknown again. 

Happy creating!

>^-^<

Tina 

 

Summertime Sketchbook Tour

 Summertime and I can never get enough of sunlight shining through the various types of green leaves, whether it be flowers or trees, I'm always looking for those glorious, glowing moments. 

Here's a quick look at a few "stop me in my tracks" inspirations which have made it into my July sketchbook pages so far...

Early morning in a nearby park and the blossoming Russian sage is captivating, I took so many photos!! I love the soft purple surrounded by all that green.

 

 Photographing into the sun, hoping to get a balanced image of the brilliant sun rays and dappled shadow below pine and deciduous trees.

 

The formal arrangement of repeating sprinkler arches and strategically placed trees is satisfying to me. It feels balanced, serene.

One of my favorite trees to photograph, I always find it's twisty branches so interesting.

 

 A reminder that all of these little gems are truly small, only 2.50 by 3.50 inches, it takes me about an hour to paint each one. My goal is to choose my favorite ones, then paint them larger and try to capture that same fresh brushwork.

I haven't been successful yet, but I keep trying. I find it's often helpful to have an inspiration and goal to keep me focused and moving forward to improve my skills. 

 What type of creative journey calls to your heart? Decide on one small step you can take on that path and begin.

Happy Creating! 

>^-^< 

Tina

Beware The Reference Photo Trap!

 

"Shades of Pink"

 

Question: What does that blue diagonal section on the right side of the painting above look like to you? 

Is it a river with a mountain range behind in the distance? 

Is it a sidewalk in shadow, speckled with sunlight? 

Here is the original photo I took for reference to give you the answer.

Beauty behind bars.

 

When I put the photo and painting side by side, you can see I actually painted what I saw fairly accurately, minus the fence bars, of course. 

Original photo and "Shades of Pink" painting

 

I painted "Shades of Pink" in 2021 and it never felt quite right to me and I couldn't quite put my finger on "why" exactly. 

This spring, I decided to try again to figure out the problem. When I asked for input from my husband, and my cousin, both of them with great artistic sensibilities, it finally became clear that they were visually confused by the sidewalk in shadow and they both thought they were seeing a river with green mountains in the distance.

My problem suddenly became obvious, I had been trapped by one of the biggest pitfalls of painting from photos! 

I've known for over 30 years that sometimes what you see in a photo may not translate well into a painting, even if you paint what you see accurately, it may not look right no matter what you do.

Both of them gave me some useful advice on how I could clear up the confusion. My cousin in particular had this excellent insight to share:

Essentially, the sidewalk lacks context, there are no visual clues to suggest what it actually is, there is no grass growing in the sidewalk cracks, and we can't see the tree that is casting the dark shadow. So I could either add more detail to the sidewalk or I could emphasize the cast shadow. 

"Shades of Pink" with more shadow, less "river."

I didn't want more details in the background pulling the focus away from the poppies, so I chose to increase the shadow. It only took a little bit of time and paint and like magic, a painting that has puzzled me for years already looked so much better!

Now, that one lonely poppy bud really looks odd and I think the painting needs a few more buds to balance it out. Since they don't exist in the original photo, I used a little digital "copy and paste" to test out where to place them.
 

The One has become Five.

I think it is an improvement! It is these kinds of visual puzzles that make the art of painting both frustrating and very exhilarating when you finally solve them. Now it's time to get out the brushes and paint those buds in for real.

Happy creating!

>^-^<

Tina

An Unpredictable Journey

 

  Often the first question someone asks an artist is "how much time did it take to paint that?" One of the most true answers I have heard is "a life time" but I honestly don't think that is satisfying or makes sense to anyone except other artists!

I do keep a log of my art making time because it helps me judge how long a project is going to take, and even then I still get surprised. Sometimes it just takes extra time to solve the painting puzzle, no matter how much planning and previous experience I have invested.

Here is an example, I have had this painting on my easel since September 2024 and am just finishing it now in February of 2025. No, I haven't been working on it every day over that time, but in short painting sessions between other projects that took priority. Even at that, I seriously thought I would have it done in November! 

Here's a sample of that journey...

On a rare solo hike on a local trail in September, I stopped and attempted a quick color sketch of that beautiful fall day.

Back in the studio, I chose a 9x12 inch canvas and began my favorite part, which is sketching out the basic arrangement and color scheme of the landscape. I chose to do an orange under-painting because it adds some "sunny day" warmth to the following layers of paint.

October, I was cruising happily along until I realized the rock on the left is placed too high, so the tree trunk looks too short! I am really bummed to lose that rock, I painted it so nicely. Also, the blue sky is too bright and needs softer graduation in color to add depth, the mountain range also needed a greyed down purple to add more atmospheric distance, so some of those nice tree branches had to go as I repainted most of the background.

January, I'm back on track, but now I'm not getting the shadow over the rock to look right, I knew I was going to miss that original rock! Solution, just put the whole rock in the sun and forget that pesky shadow, which means I must remove it from the trail too.

Early in February, the painting is starting to look finished, one last important detail was realizing the tree trunk on the left needed a sunny side to match the sunny rock. Okay, fixed that, now it feels essentially "done," but honestly, that foreground shadow still bothers me! Is it too dark? Is the shape the problem? Ugh, do I just let it be and move on? Knowing when a painting is completed isn't always clear.

If you have read this far, you get the reward of an answer to the question, "how much time?" Actual painting time so far, 46 hours, spread over 5 months and this could change if I decide to rework that shadow. 

I hope that helps explain why the "how much time" question can be a complicated one for an artist to answer!

Happy Creating,

>^-^<

Tina

Keep that Creative Spark Glowing

 

"Storm Birds"

Being very aware of some of the truly horrible things happening to other people in the world, I have been feeling rather discouraged. I value kindness and it really depresses me when I see other humans being so downright horrible to each other. What does making and sharing my art even mean in the big scheme of things?  I even questioned why writing my little blog about the importance of resisting fear and continuing to create matters. 

I was deep in the darkness and struggling, but it occurred to me that it matters to me, it lifts my heart, and if I'm lucky, what I do may lift and encourage someone else's heart too. 

"Storm Birds, Edge of Light"

  

I also know from studying history that it's such a luxury to be able to make art and it still is! Paint, paper, canvas, gesso, brushes, and brush cleaner etc. all cost money and of course, it costs in time spent making the art. It's essential to be grateful for whatever resources I have, and remember to value and make use of this luxury with all my energy while I have it.

I can't do anything about the powerful, dark and ugly side of humans who care nothing about the well being of their fellow beings, but I, myself can keep being kind and not spread the hate. 

May you find your own creative way to resist the darkness and shine too, what a difference a little light makes!

Happy creating,

>^-^<  Tina

Perception Shift

 

This painting is a failure. 

Yes, you read that right, I painted this sunrise in 2009, it was the view from our house in Taos Canyon looking towards the east, I used to love to watch the sunrise colors shine through the branches of a group of juniper trees and one young ponderosa pine. 

I remember struggling with this painting for a long, long time. My sunset colors were too bright at first, I toned them down, but I couldn't get them to blend how I wanted, purple and yellow made an awful muddy color where they met in the sky, I couldn't get the dark color for the trees to be less transparent, plus the clouds looked just awful to me. I finally reached a point where I declared it “finished enough," put it away and decided painting sunrise/sunset landscapes was just not for me.

15 years later...

Imagine my surprise when I pulled it out of the cardboard box it was stored in last week and realized, it’s not as bad as I remembered, I had actually captured the look of those sunrises from that particular place and time!

What in the world was wrong with my perception that I thought this painting was such a failure?

If I remember correctly, I think I was too invested in making it look exactly like the photo. I had the idea that if I followed the colors in a photo precisely, my painting would be successful, I couldn't fail, and I was truly disappointed that I couldn't get the clouds or the colors to express the joy I felt on those mornings.

The irony is that this spring I finally made a little sunset painting that I absolutely love. I was taking a class on painting light taught by Jed Dorsey, and instead of following the reference photo for the class assignment exactly, I combined his color strategy and my own memories of Greece.

 

The sunset colors are kind of over-the-top bright, but I love them, as well as the whole glowing rocky shoreline moodiness of the painting. I didn't think I had sunset painting capability in me, but there it is!

This was truly a lesson learned, I think being so obsessed with perfection clouded my judgement, I couldn't see clearly what I had done right! I also never imagined that letting go of the strategy to copy colors exactly would give me more of what I was looking for.

Let go of the fear of doing it wrong, and trust more -

Happy Creating!

>^-^<

Tina