". . . a brush with nature"

As practicing, professional artists we all know how important it is to use our own reference photos as a starting place for our works of art. But that is exactly what those photos should be – only a starting point.  Having reference photos to work from should never limit us to only what we see in front of us. We should be able to move beyond the pictures and imagine more, freeing ourselves to experiment and explore.

Many years ago (about 12 to be precise) my husband, grandson and I paid a visit to a wild animal park on the other side of the state. Of course, we took many photos during our trip which I have made use of often throughout the years. Recently I went through them again as I contemplated another series of paintings based on a North American wildlife theme. (Back then we were still using a pre-digital camera, so I had stacks of actual photos to physically look through. It was definitely old school, I know, but I had a lot of fun reminiscing!)

I found three images in particular that struck my fancy. They were each nice shots of the individual animals, but the surrounding backgrounds were unexceptional. I know I had used at least one of the photos before as a reference for a painting, but it doesn’t matter if you revisit your references . . . especially if you plan on really changing things up. That was my idea, so I let my imagination run wild going way beyond the basic picture before me.

The adult black bear was a beauty. I absolutely loved the expression on her face and it made me wonder what she was smiling about. Almost instantly I “saw” a mom with cubs playing all around her. A lot of imagination went into the addition of the little ones, but I am happy with the story I was able to tell by starting off with momma bear’s enigmatic smile.

In my photo the snowy owl was nestled amongst the ferns looking slightly up at the camera. A lovely portrait to be sure, but I wanted something a bit more dramatic. I thought an ombré of dark blues for a background would really allow my owl to “pop” on my canvas. I then added spatters that could either be interpreted as stars or snow, this being left up to each individual viewer.

Wolves have always fascinated me and this one was no exception. Even after all these years I still remember standing before her for as long as time allowed transfixed by her regal bearing. Although I am sure she was not the alpha female, in my mind I believe she might very well be the beta. That is why I titled this painting, “Lady in Waiting.” (Historically, a lady in waiting was often a noble woman, but of a lower rank than the female she served.) This wolf seemed so magnificent and dignified to me…definitely with a sense of nobility. I imagined her in a place of beauty, surrounded by flowers with sunlight filtering through to the ground. This is the setting I envisioned.

So, you see, as an artist you can let your mind wander and your imagination fly even with a very mundane reference shot right in front of you. In fact, it is encouraged. That is what creativity is all about, after all.