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Saturday, January 24, 2015

Finding Inspiration in an Unlikely Place


'Down by the Sea'           8x10           pastel             ©Karen Margulis
available $125
I didn't go there looking for inspiration. I did go because I was looking for treasure. And I found more than treasure today. It was my weekly mindless trip to the Goodwill down the street. I love poking around thrift stores. It is the thrill of the hunt. Sometimes I have a particular search in mind and other times I just go to clear my head.

Today I had no real goal. I was just procrastinating. I needed to pack and clean the house since my cruise is this week. A quick run to the thrift store would be all I would do and then I would get to my chores. But instead I found some treasure and came home inspired to paint. The cleaning would have to wait!




Today's thrift store finds...a paper cutter, some cool treasures and a big book on Monet

I found some interesting items today. The first is a Dahle Personal rolling trimmer for $4.54! It has an $80 value but it is priceless for me and all the paper I cut.  Next I found some interesting items....a punched tin mirror with doors. I have been wanting one of these mirrors. This one is copper and gold. Price $2.52.  Next is a strange item which appears to be some kind of Native American or tribal piece. It is light color hide on a handle with leather stitching. I need to research this. Price $1.91.

Lastly,  I found a great book on Monet by Sandro Sprocatti. It is large with many nice color plates. Price $1.91.

I came home with my treasures with an idea brewing. Why not use the paper cutter to cut some paper and then paint something using a color palette inspired by something in the new Monet book.

Inspired by Monet's palette
I opened the book to a beautiful beach painting and selected pastels to match the colors I saw in the painting. I then found one of my own beach photos to work from.  Once I picked the pastels I closed the book so I wouldn't be influenced by anything other than the color palette.  My beach scene was similar to Monet's without the addition of boats, buildings and people. It was a fun afternoon. Now I have to go pack!




3 comments:

  1. Oh this is beautiful! I love the painting, the article made me smile too! Inspiration comes in so many forms. You got some great finds!

    I used to love going to thrift stores. I need to find a good one here in San Francisco and just pick a day and go this summer. I'd need to know the address first and might have to do some searching to find it, but it could be well worth it.

    Especially for still life objects. I went looking for metal and glass cool stuff to do a setup and realized all of that was still back in Arkansas. I miss my shells and minerals too.

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  2. I love your idea of selecting a master's painting for color inspiration and then closing the book and making it your own! I also love the thrill of the hunt (and when procrastinating, and fun finds with friends) that thrift stores provide!
    This painting is a treasure! Beautiful!

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  3. What a great idea - and it turned out so wonderful!

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