In The Clouds in the Blue Ridge

A Cloud has settled over my mountain home this morning, the midst is velvety and humid, the light is soft and full of mystery, and the smells are of the forest and wet dew heavy upon the leaves and undergrowth.  I walk out on the deck with my morning coffee and sit silent in natures cathedral.

What Inspires Us?

What inspires people to do art? There are many things, beauty, nature, sadness, a tender moment, war, tragedy, a thought, an idea, a concept, science, happiness,....the list is endless, for it is what motivates the artist to put pen to paper, paint to canvas, a note to a composition, and movement to dance. Think of Picasso's Guernica about the horrors of war, or the enigmatic smile on Mona Lisa's lips, the tenderness of a child and their Mother in Mary Cassat's Mother and Child, and the science in the study of color in Joseph Alber's Squares.

Some artist are intent on copying realistically what they see, others want to capture a feeling, others want to convey and idea...and still others want to work only from their subconscious. There is no right and wrong in art. It is what inspires you to want to express yourself. Art is self expression.

Florida is one of the things that inspires me. I love the Florida thunderstorms and the fireworks of lightning in the night sky. I love the sound of the rain rustling in the plams, and the glint of the light as it shines on the fanned leaves. I love the pond grasses and red winged black birds that flick in and out, the More hen's poignant chirp, I love the sunsets and watching rain sweep across the landscape. Will I paint or make art of these things, maybe not, but it triggers such an emotion of joy, I often turn to doing art. What inspires you? Please feel free to share.