How do you find your inspiration

I often work with newer artists who ask 'how do I find inspiration' or 'what should I paint?' The answer to this is, of course, complex and is also different for every person, but one thing is consistent for everybody. Your inspiration comes from the things you love or the things you feel most passionate about.

On top of that, for me there is often a spark created by a series of connections. My ideas often clarify during conversations about seemingly unrelated things.

For example, while I was in California, Taylor Swift released a new album. I'm not a huge fan of pop music but I've always enjoyed her storytelling. The pending album release prompted me to go onto Youtube and look for some older songs and I found a couple of beautiful tunes that were new to me. Both were about the subject of female anger. One is called 'Mad Woman' and one is called 'My Tears Ricochet.'

When her album came out, it was filled with more powerful songs, about anger and I was fascinated by the honesty and vulnerability of the lyrics. one day later, I was talking to Rachel Davis on a visit to her Sausalito studio. Quite coincidentally, she showed me a painting that was inspired by a Taylor Swift song. I said 'Oh that's interesting because I am just listening to her new album.' I went onto to describe the angry songs, and suddenly I said "this is what I should paint!"

That conversation was the catalyst for 6 paintings I made during my Californian residency. I don't think the ideas would have cystalised without speaking to Rachel, and that is what I mean about conversations. It's so important to always be open to those little buzzes of intuition that come up at random times.

After I made those paintings, people asked me 'how are you going to get these home. I hadn't actually thought about that - my plan was to paint and then leave whatever I made behind. I figured Bibby could use the canvases. But so many people connected to my work over there that I decided to do something a little bit different.

So next week, I will put those paintings up for sale - with first dibs going to you, my newsletter readers. But instead of sending them out from my home in the UK, I will be shipping them from the US.  (This could be a fabulous time to own one of my paintings if you live in North America, as the shipping costs will be less than normal).

So why am I telling you all this? It's a reminder to myself (and maybe you) that inspiration comes from places you don't expect and in ways you don't expect. Stay alert, constantly notice where your attention and mental energy is going, and keep talking to people about your work, as speaking out loud is often where the idea sparks.

As for my latest paintings - here is one of my favourites. Stay tuned for all the others...

"Look what you made me do"
74" x 58" - acrylics, house paint, and mixed media on canvas