Finding Inspiration ...

How do I find the muse when making my art. Hmm..that an interesting question because sometimes it comes to me when I'm not looking. Like this piece, I was watering the Tiger Lily's outside my house one day and began to think about how I could incorporate this into a piece of jewelry or interpret this flower into silver and gems.

I must have put in my subconscious because the few days after I started making this bracelet. The anticlastic forms reminded me of the lily pedals and the raised mediterranean coral was the stamen of the flower. The more I worked on this bracelet the more it became easy and I just let it course from me into my hands.

When I try too hard it doesn't come to me and I typically will be at a block. So I try not to force my creative flow but rather let it come to me. Sometimes I just go do other things like play music, weld on something, hike up the mountain, wrench on my truck and then a moment of inspiration will come without thinking about it.

Those are usually my best ideas. They will arrive at anytime, just have to let it happen. I just jot it down in my sketch book and comeback to it later to finalize the concept that was in my mind.

If I attempt to force an idea it seems, for me, that it gets further away. This gets frustrating and leads to further frustration and finally obstruction of the creative flow. If its not going to happen, its not going to happen, I will typically move on to something else.

Works for me don't know if it works for everyone.