Do you ever have a feeling or emotion that you just need to throw onto your canvas or paper, but feel restricted by some self-imposed technical painting process you need to follow?
Up until very recently, I was falling into this trap, and painting was just starting to feel like a chore.
As someone who spent my early art career painting mostly animals and portraits, I got into a rhythm of photo reference reliance and exactitude and I lost any sense that I was communicating any feelings.
It just felt like:
“Here is a painting of a horse.”
“Here is a painting of a dog.” Bleh!
Not to say that the subject matter of animals doesn’t lend itself to self-expression by other artists, but for me and the method I got locked into following was just getting stale and I felt very limited.
It was just a couple of years ago that I began embracing a more expressive and less restrictive style, and it felt like such a relief!
For the Love of Trees
I’m sure many of you artists have known this longer than I have, but it seems that I can express my emotions to the fullest when I’m depicting a non-human subject. For me, one of my very favorite subjects to paint is trees.
A couple of years ago, in addition to feeling stifled by my artwork, I was also going through a rough time personally with feelings of loneliness and solitude.
I had just had my first baby, I was a stay-at-home mom, it was the dead middle of winter in Wisconsin, and I didn’t have a strong social network to help see me through it all.
Somehow I got an image of a tree in my head, I sketched it out, and painted it. No photo reference, no reliance on “proper tree anatomy” — I just painted what my heart was feeling.
I know that trees are not an exotic subject by any means, but I have never really painted landscapes before, so it was quite a departure for me. As soon as I got that idea though, it really resonated with me.
If you think about it, trees already seem to convey their own emotions, don’t they? Think of a strong, confident oak tree or a sad, weeping willow.
Plus, the context can say so much too–a solitary bare tree in a barren landscape communicates something different than a leafy tree covered in colorful birds.
Some of My Tree Paintings
“With Stars in My Eyes”
Acrylic on Paper 11″x14″
In creating this painting, I was feeling a sense of quiet wonder and contemplation. The tree stands alone, but is content to be standing vigil in the presence of such beauty that the universe provides.
“I Miss You”
Watercolor 8″x10″
Here is one of my lonely paintings. It shows two trees that seem like they are almost touching, but then you see that they are on separate hills separated by space. The connection between them is strong, but they are too deeply rooted in place.
“The Clearing”
Acrylic on Paper 8″x10″
Here is another tree painting where I was feeling peaceful and contemplative. Nighttime almost always conveys quiet to me, and these trees are content just to watch the night turn into the dawn.
What My Departure Has Taught Me
In short, exploring new subject matter and painting processes has led me back to feeling that my art matters to me again. This is priceless, and I think every artist wants to feel this way about what they create.
Now, I rarely get stuck for ideas. I don’t just paint trees anymore, but that initial jump helped to free me up.
Somehow, I feel I can paint any subject and I will find a way to express myself and infuse my soul into it, even if I do use a photo reference. It no longer feels limiting because now I know I can break my own rules, and I can be as expressive as I want to be–whether with subject, color, composition, etc.
How do you reignite your artistic inspiration? Do you have a muse that inspires you? Please let me know in the comments below!
