Tuesday, 17 January 2012

Artist ideas and concepts.

"An idea is our visual reaction to something seen - in real life, in our memory, in our imagination, in our dreams." ~ Anna Held Audette from the book, The Blank Canvas


An artists ideas and concepts can come from a variety of places. i have been researching these ways to see if i can apply them to my own idea process. Here are some of the ways and processes i have found:

  • images- work of other artists- Andy Warhol, Pablo Picasso.
  • observation, realism- Leonardo da vinci.
  • events, tragedy, war and life experiences- Pablo Picasso, Karen Smith- doll artist.
  • Imagination, dreams and fantasy- H. Rousseau, R Magritte and Selkie Whitebear.
Ways in which we can apply these sources or processes to our work is to think like an artist and look at these points for inspiration.
  • looking at things more closely than most people do.
  • finding beauty in everyday things and situations.
  • making new connections between different things and ideas.
  • going beyond ordinary ways of thinking and doing things.
  • looking at things in different ways in order to generate new perspectives.
  • taking risks and exposing yourself to possible failure.
  • arranging things in new and interesting ways.
  • working hard and at the edge of your potential.
  • persisting where others may give up.
  • concentrating your effort and attention for long periods of time.
  • dreaming and fantasizing about things.
  • using old ideas to create new ideas and ways of seeing things.
  • doing something simply because it's interesting and personally challenging to do.


leaf curling observation drawings
















A fantasy drawing, inspiration taken from the myths of  fairies, pixies
and nymphs. 
Anatomical observation drawings






A sketch of the grim reaper based on what  imagination has brought to life.



A drawing of real tragedy and war that conveys emotion
based on real events. 

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