Inspiration of the Day

'Beauty is Everywhere'         6x6       pastel         ©Karen Margulis

It is a common complaint. Finding something to paint is a stumbling block for many. Before I give my two cents on this topic I will share a wonderful quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson.

"Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful, we must carry it with us or we find it not."

 This quote strikes a chord with me as I am always reminding myself and my students that beauty is everywhere. We should be able to find something that touches us and inspires us wherever we look. We have to approach our search for inspiration with the mindset that there is beauty in everything. We only need to be open to it....to really SEE it. It isn't enough to just look around us. We need to feel the beauty and be sensitive to it.

I don't use beautiful and perfect reference photos for my paintings. I use small and dark photos. (bad photos) This allows me to pull out the beauty that I see inside of my mind and put it into the painting. I have discovered that  bad photos lead to my best paintings. My favorite places to paint are not the most spectacular. They possess a quiet and simple beauty that speaks to me because I am open to them.

Dry wash underpainting on white sanded paper

The next time you are searching for painting inspiration remember Emerson's words. Beauty is there. We just have to have it in our hearts so that we can see it and then paint it!

I have traveled and painted finding inspiration wherever I went. I want to share my vision with you. It is the time of sharing and being thankful so I am once again offering my painting at 50% off during my Thankful Event. Visit my etsy shop www.etsy.com/shop/karenmargulisfineart

to see the paintings and use the coupon code THANKFUL50 when you check out to get the discount.