Each Spring when the snow melts here in Northwest Montana, I feel unusually sensitive to the energy surging through our landscape. As an artist, this season is especially powerful for me. It always provides a rich source of inspiration, as everything seems to be in a frenzy of growth. This year, I created an inspiration board in an attempt to visually capture that life force energy.
The inspiration board rests in my studio space. Although I have not been working directly from the board, it has acted as a guide these past months while I’ve been painting. When the creative path leads me away on different tangents, I return to it, and I’m reminded of it’s original and powerful source of inspiration.
The elements on the board, although ordinary, act as visual reminders for me of how mysterious life really is. From the larger planetary forces at work to the tiniest cellular organisms, it’s the magic that keeps it all going, that I’m inspired by. It is this feeling of awe, that I am attempting to channel into my current work.
What is the purpose of being an artist? I think it is to highlight things and ideas, that others might overlook, or re-frame things so that they can be experienced in a different way.
In this case, to see the ordinary, as extraordinary.