Hello fellow artists! I created this art blog to inspire artists to pursue their dreams. This is my first blog on finding art inspiration. Some artists experience artist block on Instagram. I’ve seen artists share beautiful work but struggle to find other creative ideas. This post is to show some solutions to inspire your next masterpiece. Read these five sources below.
1.Social media
Social media is a great tech tool for inspiration. Popular apps like Instagram and Pinterest have great visual images to find. Search for one niche on Instagram and pick a photo that grabs your attention. Animals and flowers are some niches you can explore on IG. Pinterest is similar to Instagram, except you can see hundreds of ideas on one person's mood board. The more followers you get on Instagram can allow you to find art challenges. Print-on-demand shops like Spoonflower host weekly challenges based on cultural themes.
2. Museums
Museums are great for analyzing artifacts and sculptures. I like to take photos of my favorite art pieces and use them. The Brooklyn Museum and the Moma are two of my favorite museums in New York City. I like to look at Ancient Egyptian and Asian cultures at The Brooklyn Museum. Egyptian hieroglyphics help me with my typography process. I’m influenced to create my fonts on Adobe Illustrator because of those trips. This year I was able to view the Frederic Bruly Bouabre Unbound exhibit. I enjoyed seeing Bouabre's hundreds of colorful drawings on postcards.
3.TV Shows and Movies
TV Shows and movies are always a good resource. The cinematography keeps your eyes glued to the screen. Research movies with great visual effects, CGI or film editing. Looking at my favorite TV shows like Killing Eve, and Better Call Saul helps me illustrate beautiful landscapes. Each one of those shows's cinematography and color scheme looks amazing. I suggest that you pick out color palettes from your favorite shows and put them in your sketch. Pause the show and look and write down the colors you use.
4. Music
Music not only boosts your mood but helps build creativity. Listening to lyrics can help you visualize scenes in your mind. You can think of the colors you hear or the sounds that you hear each beat. Upbeat pop and hip-hop music lift my spirits. Prince and Michael Jackson are iconic solo artists who understand the beauty of music. A song like “Purple Rain” depicts visual imagery like purple clouds pouring through the sky. A song like “Thriller” evokes horror themes. The thunder, wind, and footstep sound effects are nothing more than visuals you can illustrate. So, music isn’t just for listening, it's for picturing what you hear on paper. Listen to your favorite song and draw what you hear.
5.Food
Food is always a great artistic inspiration. If you love to cook like me, you should take time out to analyze your food. When shopping for your food, look at the colors and the texture. Cooking spaghetti and lasagna boosts my creativity because I get to marinate the meat, peppers, and onions. I enjoy looking at the final mixed result before I cook the meat in the pan. Find a family recipe and cook it for fun. Observe all the ingredients and use that as your muse. Have fun cooking with a loved one. Sketch out your favorite foods on your pad. Fruits and vegetables will also give you great inspiration.
Final thoughts
Remember that art is everywhere. Everything you see outside can be a work of art. You just have to open your mind to your various settings. Take your time exploring what you need to see. Execute your visions on paper.
What are your art inspirations? Comment below.