Stood Up by the Muse

LgWharfside200The question for today is, what gets you into creative mode for painting? I’ve found there are some really odd assumptions out there among non-artists. I’ve had people tell me that I must go to my studio and sit and daydream until the muse arrives. Whut? Personally, I have a lot of difficulty putting that one onto my daily schedule. “Wait for muse. Arrival date – unknown. Arrival time – anyone’s guess.” Really not going to work for me. One thing that I have occasionally done to help get the right brain going, is to spend just a couple of minutes doing gesture drawings. Fast, furious, let go and let loose drawing. That can help. It’s also true that the right music can help, although for me that’s more an energizer to keep me painting once I’ve started.  But my number one all time works-almost-everytime tip that gets me into the painting mode? Pick up the brush and start painting. It certainly gets me over being stood up by the muse. However, I acknowledge that we are all unique, and I’d love to hear from other artists what gets you painting. Comments welcome!