I Have No Idea What I Want to Do
Methods for Finding an Idea
External Inspirations
Landscape, portraits, cityscapes, flowers, nature….these are subjects we can observe outside of us. We can seek out new inspirations by getting out of our usual routine and finding fascinating people, places and things that can become the subject of our work.
Write down some subjects you can observe outside of yourself that you could explore more deeply, starting with any of these categories:
People
Nature
Objects
Society
Politics and current events
Places
Internal Inspirations
Memories, emotions, visions, spirituality, intuition, imagination…be still and let yourselves be present with your experience.
Here are some suggestions for accessing your internal experience. This is a big topics, so these are really just search terms to help you explore directions
Intuitive painting processes like those found in Point Zero Painting or Painting from the Source. A quick search will reveal many books on the topic.
Using art for healing and personal development. Search for “expressive arts visual art” for websites and suggested activities.
Exploring myths, archetypes
Art as a form of mediation - put on some music and paint abstractly to the sounds and experience. Pretend you have synesthesia!
Art as a way of exploring memory, self, identity
Process Inspiration
This is when the process itself is the inspiration. It can be abstract or representational, but if it is representational, the image has no real meaning, it is just a holder for the process. This approach is similar to scientific experimentation - you try things out and see what happens, or deeply investigate the potential of a material.
What interests you about the materials you make art out of?
Is there a process that interests you that you want to investigate?
Is there a novel way you use materials that you can focus on and explore more extensively?
What mediums do you want to get better at using?
Design Inspiration
Exploring color, line, texture, balance - the elements and principles of design are always considered as part of the composition of any artwork, but they can also be the subject of an artwork.
If you are unfamiliar with the elements of art, you might find them transformative. I was an art major, but was not explicitly taught the “Es and Ps” directly. When I started teaching art, they were the foundation of the standards for K-12 schools and I was like “what the heck is this?” But then I started playing around with them and my art dramatically improved.
There are a plethora of websites that describe the Elements and Principles
Are there any elements or principles you’ve been less than fully aware of as you work? Which ones do you want to use more consciously?
Each of the elements and principles has meaning. Line is a boundary for example. Can you explore the symbolism of one of the elements or principles?
I Have a Stale Idea- Explorations
Go deeper into your subject
What is your unique experience and perspective on the subject you want to explore? Don’t try to figure that out by thinking - you will find by actively exploring the subjects you are interested in through writing and drawing.
Exploring your ideas through writing
Synonyms
Free write
Object writing
Exploring through drawing
Find or create reference photos of your subject
Do 5-10 quick sketches of your reference images, each time emphasizing or focusing on a different part of your subject.
Don’t try to recreate the photo - ignore the background and parts you aren’t interested in. What draws you in about the subject?
Go deeper into your process
Many artists struggle to “loosen up” in their art, and to use their materials in a way that feels natural and like an extension of themselves. This section of explorations is designed to help you develop fluency, spontaneity and confidence with the mediums and techniques you want to explore.
When we don’t feel confident with a medium or technique we want to use, we often work slowly and get caught up in the details. When toddlers are learning to talk, they just talk imperfectly! They don’t talk slowly word by word, trying to perfect their pronunciation. Toddlers are wise. There is a time and a place for working slowly and deliberately, but the sooner you let yourself use the medium or technique in an imperfect experimental way, the sooner you will find your unique way of using it, and it will feel like an extension of your artistic voice, a language you are fluent in.
What techniques or mediums can you combine in a new way?
Try working faster and with a time limit. You want to paint more expressive portraits? Experiments with using time limitations and speed to loosen up and let go.
Mark-making is a big topic in art. Many artist value a fluid expressive quality to their line work. A web search will yield many resources to explore to help you loosen up and work more expressively.
Go deeper into your visual vocabulary
These are fun sketchbook activities to develop fluency with materials, design, and skills.
Element Rotations - create mini vignettes where you emphasize 2 elements (line, shape, value, color, texture) and deemphasize the other 3. Depending on your medium, you might have other elements to include in the rotation.
Synectic Trigger Mechanisms
Stencil and monoprint experiments
Playing with composition
Go deeper into your style
Mood board of colors, textures, styles, stuff you love and are interested in artistically
Learn from artists you admire. This exercise comes from artist Natalie Dadamio. Choose two artists you love whose styles are different from each other. For each artist write down three things you like in their work. Experiment with combining things from each list in small, quick works.
Look over your list of artistic values. Look over your past work, both the pieces you love and the ones that you don’t like, and consider how well they align with those values you identified.
Methods for Finding an Idea
- Let an idea arise through intuitive work, like automatic drawing, stream-of-conscious writing or active imagination. Quiet your mind and see what arises.
- Consider an idea you’ve had for a while but haven’t been sure about. If it’s stuck with you, there’s a reason
- Explore big questions, personal, social or philosophical.
- Continue a tradition
- Look to your past works for themes and repeated elements
External Inspirations
Landscape, portraits, cityscapes, flowers, nature….these are subjects we can observe outside of us. We can seek out new inspirations by getting out of our usual routine and finding fascinating people, places and things that can become the subject of our work.
Write down some subjects you can observe outside of yourself that you could explore more deeply, starting with any of these categories:
People
Nature
Objects
Society
Politics and current events
Places
Internal Inspirations
Memories, emotions, visions, spirituality, intuition, imagination…be still and let yourselves be present with your experience.
Here are some suggestions for accessing your internal experience. This is a big topics, so these are really just search terms to help you explore directions
Intuitive painting processes like those found in Point Zero Painting or Painting from the Source. A quick search will reveal many books on the topic.
Using art for healing and personal development. Search for “expressive arts visual art” for websites and suggested activities.
Exploring myths, archetypes
Art as a form of mediation - put on some music and paint abstractly to the sounds and experience. Pretend you have synesthesia!
Art as a way of exploring memory, self, identity
Process Inspiration
This is when the process itself is the inspiration. It can be abstract or representational, but if it is representational, the image has no real meaning, it is just a holder for the process. This approach is similar to scientific experimentation - you try things out and see what happens, or deeply investigate the potential of a material.
What interests you about the materials you make art out of?
Is there a process that interests you that you want to investigate?
Is there a novel way you use materials that you can focus on and explore more extensively?
What mediums do you want to get better at using?
Design Inspiration
Exploring color, line, texture, balance - the elements and principles of design are always considered as part of the composition of any artwork, but they can also be the subject of an artwork.
If you are unfamiliar with the elements of art, you might find them transformative. I was an art major, but was not explicitly taught the “Es and Ps” directly. When I started teaching art, they were the foundation of the standards for K-12 schools and I was like “what the heck is this?” But then I started playing around with them and my art dramatically improved.
There are a plethora of websites that describe the Elements and Principles
Are there any elements or principles you’ve been less than fully aware of as you work? Which ones do you want to use more consciously?
Each of the elements and principles has meaning. Line is a boundary for example. Can you explore the symbolism of one of the elements or principles?
I Have a Stale Idea- Explorations
Go deeper into your subject
What is your unique experience and perspective on the subject you want to explore? Don’t try to figure that out by thinking - you will find by actively exploring the subjects you are interested in through writing and drawing.
Exploring your ideas through writing
Synonyms
Free write
Object writing
Exploring through drawing
Find or create reference photos of your subject
Do 5-10 quick sketches of your reference images, each time emphasizing or focusing on a different part of your subject.
Don’t try to recreate the photo - ignore the background and parts you aren’t interested in. What draws you in about the subject?
Go deeper into your process
Many artists struggle to “loosen up” in their art, and to use their materials in a way that feels natural and like an extension of themselves. This section of explorations is designed to help you develop fluency, spontaneity and confidence with the mediums and techniques you want to explore.
When we don’t feel confident with a medium or technique we want to use, we often work slowly and get caught up in the details. When toddlers are learning to talk, they just talk imperfectly! They don’t talk slowly word by word, trying to perfect their pronunciation. Toddlers are wise. There is a time and a place for working slowly and deliberately, but the sooner you let yourself use the medium or technique in an imperfect experimental way, the sooner you will find your unique way of using it, and it will feel like an extension of your artistic voice, a language you are fluent in.
What techniques or mediums can you combine in a new way?
Try working faster and with a time limit. You want to paint more expressive portraits? Experiments with using time limitations and speed to loosen up and let go.
Mark-making is a big topic in art. Many artist value a fluid expressive quality to their line work. A web search will yield many resources to explore to help you loosen up and work more expressively.
Go deeper into your visual vocabulary
These are fun sketchbook activities to develop fluency with materials, design, and skills.
Element Rotations - create mini vignettes where you emphasize 2 elements (line, shape, value, color, texture) and deemphasize the other 3. Depending on your medium, you might have other elements to include in the rotation.
Synectic Trigger Mechanisms
Stencil and monoprint experiments
Playing with composition
Go deeper into your style
Mood board of colors, textures, styles, stuff you love and are interested in artistically
Learn from artists you admire. This exercise comes from artist Natalie Dadamio. Choose two artists you love whose styles are different from each other. For each artist write down three things you like in their work. Experiment with combining things from each list in small, quick works.
Look over your list of artistic values. Look over your past work, both the pieces you love and the ones that you don’t like, and consider how well they align with those values you identified.