By Thomas Jefferson Kitts
There will always be days when you don’t feel like painting. Don’t let that stop you. Once you begin, the inspiration will follow.
A few years ago I did something I rarely do. I booked two plein air events almost back-to-back — one on Cape Ann, above Boston, and the other in San Angelo, Texas, with one week in between. Although I enjoy these types of competitions, where I can paint a lot of work within a short period, there are times I want to jump off the merry-go-round and be less mercenary. Why? Because art is not about producing product on demand. At its finest, it is about capturing life as directly as possible, and sometimes I lose sight of that. I decided to refresh myself between my trips to Cape Ann and San Angelo by visiting Monhegan Island. The tourist season would be over, and I could paint for five days without an agenda. Alone. I could walk around and serendipitously discover subjects to paint — like I did back in the day.
If a student asks me how I compose, I quote Sorolla: “Go to nature without parti pris (preconception). You should not know what your picture is going to look like until it is done. Just see the picture that is coming.” Buddhists call it “No Mind,” a state in which your conscious self fades and the painting takes over. I call it the flow. I know I am in the flow when time stops and the painting just happens.
It’s important to make space for yourself. Sometimes this means going far away from the maddening crowd; other times it simply means closing the door to your studio. If you feel constantly subject to demands and distractions, then screw a bolt on your door and lock it from the inside. Tell everyone to go away; you are at the office. Carve out the time you need.
Make space for yourself at the next Watercolor Live and paint with top watercolor artists from around the world, including Thomas Schaller, Barbara Nechis, Janet Rogers, Herman Pekel, and John Salminen.
