Collecting Ideas and Reference Materials
by Susan Abdella, MDA
by Susan Abdella, MDA
The answer: Everywhere! In magazines, flower and seed catalogs, books of all kinds, the library, wallpaper books, fabric stores, painted furniture, museums, in nature, and photographs.
Begin with a simple file system; there are all kinds available. (I have several plastic Rubbermaid storage bins that fit nicely on a shelf in my paint studio.) Use manila folders filed alphabetically according to subject: animals, birds, border ideas, Christmas themes, folk art, people, etc. Into these folders store all of your loose articles from magazines, etc. Go through your stacks of old magazines and remove those articles and pictures of interest, even those that you are not quite sure about. File these articles and toss the outdated magazines! You will not only remove clutter, but you will also have a fast and easy system available for ideas and inspiration.
Then there is the camera, which has become indispensable to artists, especially the digital camera. Use it! Photograph anything that you find appealing: flowers in a vase or in the garden, inspirations for a still life, landscape, nature, children at play, etc. File your photographs according to subject also, in a box made for this purpose.
Be on the lookout for books all the time, especially those on sale at bookstores and warehouse stores. While on vacation or when traveling, look for gift and specialty shops, for museums, landmarks, or historical sites. You never know what you will find!
And then there is the suggestion to carry a small sketchbook and pencil with you always! Do quick sketches of ideas that flash in your mind…you will lose them if you don't. Make quick sketches of decorative designs you see on buildings and churches, on rod iron gates and fences. They are everywhere! Jot down unusual color combinations; add a few words, perhaps, to describe your emotions or feeling at the time.
And then, always look, see, and be amazed, at nature: the sky, the clouds, trees, mountains, the ocean, etc. Recently I drove through the Mojave Desert en route to the Las Vegas Convention, this just after a very rainy season. The hills, mountains, blue sky, the clouds, the “green desert” everything, was spectacular. And do you know what? There I was without my camera and without my sketchbook! Never again!!
