The Story of a Painting- Inspiration


nspiration for me is not this magical state of mind that only comes to you when you reach enlightenment or you've spent 30 minutes meditating or anything really, 

I can understand the fear of putting paint to canvas specially when the canvas is so perfect that you feel that the work you are about to do might not be perfect or whatever. So here are my tips to start painting. 

As there was a moment in time when I stopped painting all together, the fear of starting over was not at all small. So here I leave you some tips to start painting. 

1. White canvas are scary so just make a line of paint so that it won't be such a big deal anymore, conquer the monster before it paralyzes you. 

2. Don't buy the perfect canvas. For me going canvas shoppingI don't really mind if the canvas is perfect or not, it can always be fixed and if it isn't perfect it is easier to just go for it, ruining something that is already ruined is not possible. 

3. If you really need to have a concept or something to grab on to, have a notebook, paper, iPad, whatever kind of place where you can play around with a rough idea of what you want to do. Don't make it perfect, remember it is just a rough concept. I usually do it to play around with colours then I go for it. (Secret: The painting NEVER ends up close to that first rough sketch, but it helped to get the engines going. )

4. Remember your can always paint on top of it. 

5. Water and a piece of cloth are the rubbers of painting. 

6. When walking around and get ideas play around with them in the same notebook you make your concepts then you always have an awaiting work of art.

7. Have a concept and when walking around look for things that make that concept flourish. Keep your eyes wide open.

I paint everyday during the afternoon and during weekends mainly because it is quieter, people disturb me a lot less, the phone doesn't ring as much. Painting became part of a ritual. A ritual that involves going to lovely places, meeting great and interesting people, drinking a lot of tea and having my hands really dirty!! So above all things I realized that painting must be a joyous occasion even when I am feeling anger.  

So as a final tip, if you are agonizing over it, take a step back and just put red paint in your brush and start making strokes I bet your ass it'll work.