Why Artists Benefit from Travel

'A Visit to Provence'        pastel after Van Gogh        ©Karen Margulis

I admit it. I have wanderlust. I always have. If I am not on a trip then I need to be planning the next one. When my kids were young we spent every summer traveling the country. Our trips were always centered around visiting National Parks and we have visited quite a few. I am glad we were able to share those experiences as a family. The photos I took and my memories inspire many of my paintings. I was also fortunate to have a group of art friends who also share my passion for travel. We have taken several long road trips and these adventures have added to my photo and inspiration files. Now I travel to teach workshops. I get the best of both worlds....meeting and sharing with other like minded people and exploring the world!

Have Heilman Box....will travel!

How do we benefit from travel? Why should we work hard to save and make travel a priority in our lives? Jeff Goins has written a wonderful post on his blog . He writes about how we benefit from travel. I recommend reading his post. You might just be inspired to plan a trip! I agree with all of the reasons he gives ... to grow, to learn, to be inspired, to be humbled, to appreciate where you come from, to experience other cultures among others but for me the key reason I need to travel is this:
Travel helps me see my world with the innocence of a child. When I am away from home all of my senses are sharpened. Everything is new and exciting. Even the ordinary becomes extraordinary. When we see things with the innocence of a child we have a fresh outlook and we can create better art. So every once in awhile I need to get up and go somewhere to shake off the cobwebs and rediscover the wonder of our world!

Stay tuned! In a few days I head to Provence France for a 2 week visit. I was invited to join a group of 4 other ladies and it is not a dedicated art trip. I am bringing pastels and watercolors and will be sharing my journey on Instagram @karenmargulis