Immediately after painting my last piece (the Mapperley Reservoir painting) I wanted to launch out and paint my next piece whilst all the motivation and enthusiasm still seemed fresh.
A problem for me is that creativity is not something I can just click my fingers and muster up instantaneously. Maybe for some people it comes thick and fast however for me the conditions and moment have to be aligned if I'm going to create a painting I want to paint and be proud of, and know I did my best with. So I had the motivation to paint but I hadn't the picture in my mind, nor the photo to inspire me. I found myself heading out in to the local area and taking a ton a photos but nothing stood out to me which made me think "that's the next painting!". I cannot tell you how frustrating it is knowing that whilst you're waiting for inspiration to come you know your enthusiasm is ebbing away each day. I couldn't attempt a painting of something I was only half-hearted about as the effort would be half-hearted too. I pretty much lost it to be honest. I expect it's like 'writers block' for a writer, a feeling of helplessness in the creative department of my brain. Wanting to be inspired but feeling at a loss.
And then one day, I took my bike out for a change of scenery one evening and decided to cycle the old Nottingham canal near to Ilkeston and there she was...a heron perched still and silently waiting to catch a meal. I sat on my bike and watched her for about 10 minutes and took a bunch of photos. The evening sun was setting, the stillness of the early evening helped by the fact that there was no one else around and it was perfect! I took a few photos and just knew...'this is it..my next painting'. I hadn't been planning it, I had no preference to paint an old overgrown canal scene, but it just inspired me in that moment!
So here you have it. It's called "Those Who Wait".
I am my own worst critic so when i see this painting i can still see lots of things I would have done differently - however I actually I know I'm missing an important point about improvement; I know that I can keep improving and yet accept that it can only be as good as I am on that particular painting at that moment in time, and so there comes a point I have to simply call it 'finished' and be done with it knowing I've learned a ton of new techniques. I hope I can look back at this in years to come and see how far I've progressed.
For now I'm waiting again, waiting for the next photo or moment of inspiration to come which hopefully will be rewarded by my patience as much as this heron gets rewarded for her patience with a big juicy fish. All good things come to those who wait patiently and expectantly.
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