There’s nothing more frustrating than when you want to paint but you have no idea what to paint. Coming up with the perfect idea is difficult at times, then you end up not painting anything at all.
You just need a little inspiration. Take a look around. Some of the best ideas are right under your nose waiting for you to flex your art skills. To get you started, here are 9 painting ideas inspired by things in real life.
1. Something You Collect
If you love something enough to collect more than one of it, you can show it some extra appreciation by painting it. You really have the chance to go over the details that you love while you’re working on your painting and remind yourself why you started collecting in the first place.
2. Your Eyes
Practice small details by painting your eyes and eyebrows. Take a clear picture of your eyes to painting from so you can easily see every facet of them. Or kick things up a notch and set up a mirror so you can paint your eyes in real-time while you’re looking at yourself.
3. Your Hands or Feet
There’s plenty of other sources of inspiration attached to your body. Just look to the ends of your limbs. Everyone could use a little more practice with hands and feet. Why not try painting your own? They’re right there in front of you, after all. You can easily put them in any position you want to capture for your painting.
4. Something that Features a Pattern
Patterns give you the chance to make something beautiful and focus on keeping your hands nice and steady as you work. Find something nearby with a pattern on it — a blanket, rug, some decorative tile, etc. Try to replicate the pattern as perfectly as you can on your canvas. Paint just the pattern or add it as a detail in a larger painting to create visual interest.
5. The Trees Outside
Nature inspires people in all sorts of ways. So, why not you? Take your supplies outside and find a tree that speaks to you. Paint it in full detail or create a beautiful silhouette. Just paint the tree or paint the entire landscape. Allow the natural beauty to cover your canvas in any way you see fit.
6. Your Pet
What could possibly be more fun to paint than your favorite furry friend? Pick your favorite picture of your pet and put them down in paint forever. Or give yourself something more of a challenge and try painting them while they’re going about their everyday activities. Chances are, they won’t sit very still for you.
7. Something Reflective
Introduce a new technique and find something shiny to paint. Reflective surfaces offer a unique set of challenges that will get your problem-solving mind up and running. Anything that reflects light will do for a beautiful painting, from a toy to some jewelry to an actual mirror.
8. A Landmark
If you’re going to paint something, it may as well be something memorable. Pick your favorite landmark, the coolest thing you’ve ever seen, an important place in your city, or somewhere you wish you could visit. Paint it as if you’re sitting right in front of it and see what kind of feelings it gives you.
9. A Masterpiece You Love
Imitation is the kindest form of flattery! Choose an artist you admire and attempt to recreate one of their masterpieces. It doesn’t have to be perfect by any means. Try to get a feel for their technique and what they were thinking while they created such incredible work. You might just learn something new along the way!
In Conclusion
Inspiration doesn’t have to be some big explosive thing that you have to paint immediately. It can be something small, something quiet, and something that you see every single day. One of the best places to draw your inspiration from is your everyday life.
Put the things you see and do on a daily basis on the canvas to practice new techniques or just for the fun of it. And then look outside of these 9 painting ideas and see what else in your life inspires you to create.
