Every person who is an artist (and an artist at heart!) has an interesting and unique personal story of the very first things that got them into the world of creativity. These are the initial sparks that ignite the unfolding events of a person's journey with art. Over time, these small love affairs wax and wane, are added to, subtracted from, and evolve. Despite this changeable process, their presence is monumental to getting us started in every project we confront.
In today's post, I would like to share some of the things that personally inspire me in making my own art! Let's see if we share any inspirations, shall we? :)
Flowers and Foliage
It's a recent development, but I absolutely adore flowers. To tell you the truth, I never used to be so enchanted by them. Over the years though, my mind became really open to the idea of learning about flowers and taking in their beauty in a deeper way. Beautiful blooms perfectly convey the concept of the impermanence of life, and why we should be enjoying it in the present. They also have many different looks, colors, and shapes, and these individual personalities are something that artists can take advantage of to really add to the aesthetic of their work. Flowers are also many an art-lover's fan-favorite for those reasons too, and I'm no exception!
A beautiful flower I found at the Baltimore Arboretum!
A lovely day spent walking by around Centennial park in MD.
Flowers I found up on a mountain in the Jinjiang Countryside, Jinjiang City, China, near some sweet goats!
A beautiful tiny community garden I found in Chiang Mai, Thailand
Jeremy Thomas, Photographer, Unsplash
Animals
Aside from flowers, animals are some other forms of life we can highly relate to. The reason I love animals so much I think has much to do with many of the children's books I read growing up, like Charlotte's Web for example. Like most kids, I loved the personification of the animals in the stories. Many of us have a great deal of empathy for other creatures and they make for fabulous subjects. As an artist you can use this familiarity to your advantage to create an emotional connection with the viewer!
Very awesome monkey staring at me in Krabi, Thailand by the beach!
Koi fish at the Byodo-In Temple, in Oahu, Hawaii.
Very cute baby ducks in Taipei, Taiwan.
Hippo from my visit to the Taipei Zoo, Taipei, Taiwan. He actually got a little peeved at having people nearby after this! These creatures are very powerful!
Golden Snub-Nosed Monkeys from my visit to the Dalian Zoo, Dalian, China.
Wild monkey from my visit to Krabi, Thailand.
Other Artists
I love looking at other artist's work, what they've accomplished, and connect with their pieces. It's so easy today to find good inspiration online, but there are a few artists that really started me down this journey, before such things like Instagram came around.
John William Waterhouse
Reason's I love Waterhouse's work has to do with this ethereal nature of his subjects, the focus on myth, and the feminine nature of his pieces. Many of the subjects look very demure, but hold soft power as seductresses, like mermaids for example. He also tends to incorporate many of my favorite things, like florals, landscape, and rich fabrics/ textures.
"Boreas", John William Waterhouse
John William Waterhouse Art Book, Phaidon
Alphonse Mucha
Mucha's very popular decorative work I am a big fan of, like so many others. From a purely aesthetic point of view, I love his color choices and the balance in his pieces. He was an illustrator and designer is every sense, with his impeccable mastery of design concepts. I'm obsessed with this piece in particular, the ivy, the maple leaves, ooo! Aahh!
"Ivy", Alphonse Mucha
Mary Blair
If you have every come across the famous "Little Golden Books" as a child, or been a big fan of Disney, you will probably have seen some of Mary Blair's work. One of my favorite aspects about her work is the color. I have one of her Cinderella concept art pieces on my wall and I can never get enough of looking at it. She was another person who was very talented in design. One of the biggest things I noticed about her earlier work vs. her later work, is that during her career she went through a massive shift from using only blacks and darker colors, to vibrant, rich colors, and she attributes some of that to her travels to other countries. I think that is an awesome example of how travel can impact your work in a radical way.
Chinese Ink Brush Painting / Art
This book that I bought by the living artist Sungsook Hong Setton was very inspirational to me. I love her perspective on the medium, and you can just see in her work that she really harnesses the power of "qi", which is described as the life force energy behind all living things. Her brush strokes are lively, perfect, and full of her soul. I really aspire to create this kind of energy in my pieces someday!
Piece I found at the National Palace Museum, Taiwan
Another piece from the National Palace Museum, Taiwan
Impressionism
Impressionism was my very first love as a young, middle school art student. I had a bias against Monet though, I was way too cool to like the most famous impressionist painter that every average joe knows. Instead, my dude was Renoir. He had a little less loose of a style, and I appreciate the form that he created through his excellent drawing skills.
Today I like them all. Collectively, the impressionists did so much for western art as we know it today. One of the aspects of impressionism that impresses me most as an adult is the expression of light, and the mark-making. You might have noticed in my acrylic paintings there are many small dots, and I think I subconsciously borrowed this from impressionism without knowing it. Now if only I could get the quality of their light, I would be really happy!
“Meules”, Monet, (and the highest selling impressionist work so far! 110 Million!)
"Le jardin de l'artiste à giverny", Monet
Yoshitaka Amano/ Japanese Illustration and Design
As a high school student I became friends with people who were really into anime, and because of that I was starting to be exposed to Japanese culture, which would turn out to be one of my biggest inspirations so far. Rather than being attracted to anime itself however, I fell very hard for cosplay specifically, and Japanese illustration. Amano's work was my first hardcore art love, and you can probably see why, because there is a pattern starting to evolve with many of the other artists on this list. Balanced design, beautiful color choices, ethereal subjects, energetic movement, and beautiful compositions. I'm still inspired by his work, he is just so incredible!
"The Tale of Genji", Yoshitaka Amano
"The Tale of Genji", Yoshitaka Amano
"Fairies", Yoshitaka Amano
Social Media
I'm not inspired by social media itself, in fact I rather dislike it. Due to the highly competitive nature of social media companies, apps have us churning out work like slaves. It's very difficult for artists to keep up with the algorithm because creation is a slow, uneven process, at odds with robotic and unforgiving social media. But I am grateful for the creatives who do use it, because without it, theres a chance I would have never encountered them and learned of their awesome creations.
Space, and Astrology
Scientists would be very upset seeing these two words in one breath (but in my mind, both of these things are still all about the cosmos), and I definitely love everything that is ethereal and about the cosmos!
Since the James Webb telescope has been up-and-running, I think we all have been thinking alot more about space these days! I know I definitely have, but I also have loved thinking about this stuff for a long time. Nebulas and stars also make for really great subjects, and I'm drawn to their beauty and mystery.
Tarot cards, which takes some inspiration from astrology! Manik Roy, Photographer, Unsplash
Video Games
When I was really little, I was one of the only girls among my cousins and brother, and I was shy. I rarely got to play video games because of this, and most of the time I ended up sitting the side, watching others playing Zelda and 007 on the Nintendo 64. Despite not being strong enough to voice my discontent, I still spent many hours doing this, because I was entranced by the fantasy worlds inside these games. As the years went by I finally broke out into my own gaming adventure as a teen, and I was all in. I still love video games to this day. As an adult, you inevitably have less time to play, but I do find them helpful for decompressing and I make sure I make time for them. In moderation I find them incredibly helpful for my mental health! I also love seeing what the creators come up with year after year, and I find it really inspiring.
The Nintendo Switch, Sara Kurfess, Photographer, Unsplash
Zelda figurines, Ryan Quintal, Photographer, Unsplash
Music
I love music! What more can I say there? Without music, it would be really difficult to get into the zone and create. Music makes our world a much, much, better place.
Traditional Clothing
I have a long personal history with clothing and fashion, and one of these days I will go deeper into this story, but I have always been fascinated with traditional clothing in particular. I haven't quite figured out a way to incorporate this into my art yet, but I will someday!
Girl wearing Yukata, Barry Voherj, Unsplash
Woman wearing Hanbok, Ara Chom, Unsplash
Landscapes and Lighting
I really enjoy a good landscape. They are perfect for artists of any level, you can make them challenging or as easy as you like, and they are another fan-favorite, next to the likes of flowers! One of the more interesting things that comes into play with landscapes to me is the ever-changing lighting. If you have ever painted outside, or plein-air, you know how challenging this can be, but getting the lighting right is a massive reward.
Over time, after doing many landscapes, I've really grown to love them. Getting the environment in a piece right, allows me to create that critical space for my actors (like people or animals) to live and breathe in.
Blue Pool, Krabi, Thailand
Another angle of the Blue Pool, Krabi, Thailand
Hakka Restaurant that we ate at near Taichung, Taiwan
Simon Wilkes, Photographer, Unsplash
Travel
I really love to travel. I don't get to do it as often as I would like, but when I do I really treasure my trips and am thankful for everything I've experienced so far in my life. Without these experiences, and being allowed to roam, I don't think I would be the same person I am today. Much has been written about the benefits of travel, but from an art perspective, getting the opportunity to travel can evolve your style, get you thinking more deeply, and spur creativity from a different perspective. I find that when I get the opportunity to get out of my area a little, it's like putting gasoline in my creative gas tank. I can create more meaningful things, and I feel more motivated to do so.
Taipei 101 Building, Taipei, Taiwan
Me on a Hawaiian trail, getting sucked up by great big tree roots!
We stopped the car while driving around in Oahu, Hawaii. Look at that water!
Sunset in Waikiki, Oahu, Hawaii. <3
The White Temple in Chiang Rai, Thailand. I got really sick on this day, on this month long trip by myself. Throwing up and the rest of it, but it was worth it to come out here!
Sweaty me, my mom, and sister-in-law picking papayas and her mom's farm in Taichung!
Spending a beautiful day with family in Pingxi, Taiwan <3
And thats it! These are all of my main inspirations as an artist! Do any of these things inspire you as well? :)