Last week, I dove into some initial takeaways from the book entitled The Creative Act: A Way of Being by the legendary music producer, Rick Rubin. My focus for Part 1 was understanding where artists find inspiration for their works. Of course, there doesn’t always have to be inspiration. A lot of times, great art is simply the the result of consistently showing up and doing the work. But when inspired, it often comes in the form of emotion and/or feelings or from other artists specifically.
Rubin told the story of how the Beatles’ Rubber Soul album inspired Brian Wilson to create Pet Sounds which upon hearing, inspired the Beatles to come up with Sgt. Pepper’s Lonley Hearts Club Band. Boom. Boom. Boom. One proflic artwork inspires another inspires another. And if you treat yourself to listening to all three of these albums in one sitting you will know and FEEL exactly what I’m talking about.
It is this form of inspiration that I deal with on the regular. A few months ago I did a blog on the artists who influenced me to become the artist I am today. This was a big-picture post showing where both my style and thought process come from. But when it comes to daily inspiration, there is no shortage. In the palm of my hand I am regularly exposed to the brilliant works of others on social media and more often than not I find daily inspiration to go out and be the best version of myself!
The true list of artists who inspire me regularly is way too long! However, I did want to point out a handful of them here so that they can get some more love and exposure and perhaps even inspire you! All of the artists below can be found on Instagram. So go find them and follow!
Sarah
stray.cat.paintings
Sarah’s work is so fun to look at! Whether its neurographic lines or elongated ellipses or splotches of coffee you’re looking for, or just exciting color theories mixed with cool geometrical designs, there’s always a wild sense of play in her pieces and looking at them makes me smile. A lot! When I look at her works, I often get the urge to go play with my pens! So consider me inspired.
Boone
Artbyboone
Boone is a young artist in South Carolina whose heavy and refined lines twist and turn and envelop each other in a beautiful dance of tangly tangleness. He often posts videos of his work in timelapse form with heavy metal or rap music to back it up. I can’t watch his videos and NOT get pumped up to let my hand wander around the paper to see what it can come up with. Plus, his works pass the cool test every time. So fucking cool!
Kristine Schneider
kristineschneiderart
The first time I saw one of Kristine’s paintings I literally stopped in my tracks and just stared at it. And stared. For a long time. She has the uncanny ability to highlight the most interesting nuances of everyday occurrences. A lot of her work revolves around family and relationships and when I see her paintings I am filled with warmth and smiles. She inspires me to make stuff that will make others feel. Lucky for me Kristine is a fellow Texas artist based out of the Woodlands so I get to see her works regularly. I encourage you to do the same!
Shelley
potatobird_
I only discovered Shelley’s work on Instagram a couple months ago, but in that short time I have been continuously inspired to go out and make stuff while looking at her works. A devout line-lover myself, I can tell you no one explores line evolution quite like she does! Her works feature fun interactions between lines as well as a wide variety of intuitive mark making. I think it is the combination of these two — and the idea that we share an attraction for primitive looking marks — that really inspires me to continue exploring my own understanding of mark making. When I look at this, I just want to grab a pen and start doodling!
Cynthia Reid
cynreid
Each of the artists I have listed as inspirations thus far hold true to a an artistic style specific to them. Upon viewing, I can tell immediately which artist made it. And then there is Cynthia Reid. I was first drawn to Cynthia’s works in pen and ink. But pen and ink is just the beginning! Good gracious: watercolor, paper weaving, mixed media, collage and pen and ink! She does it all! And she does it all inspiringly well! Every time I see a new work of hers, I find myself smiling, ready to go make something that will make somebody else smile! I mean, how cool is that?
Who inspires you to do your best work, whether it be in art or life in general? Tell me in the comments!
Jeff that’s so awesome to read! Thank you so much and you’re welcome 😉
Thx for sharing, Sarah! Much appreciated!
Jeff, thank you so much for your kind words and support, they inspire me more than you know! 🥰🙏
My pleasure, Shelley! You rock!