Sources of Inspiration

So far, I'm proving to be very bad at posting new stuff up on my blog on a regular basis.  My problem is that I tend to overthink my writing, treating each entry like I'm trying to earn an "A" on an English Lit essay (take a guess at what my major was in University...).

To remedy this, and just to build up and maintain some writing momentum, I've decided to write the occasional "quickie" post.  Topics will vary, but all will (hopefully) be of some interest to the miniature artist, and possibly a source of some inspiration and food for thought.

To that end, here are a few places that I've found to be great sources of inspiration as an artist... places where I could easily lose hours in.  These are not necessarily miniature art specific, but seeing as all miniatures / dioramas / etc usually start as a concept, then a sketch, I'm a strong believer in taking in art from as many different sources as possible:

deviantART : This is like an online art book for me, and I LOVE art books.  I haven't browsed it in quite some time... but I remember this site fondly.  Users post samples of their art here, and I never fail to find some really inspiring pieces... often I will see something that absolutely needs to be incorporated into some project of mine, and translated somehow into a 3D miniature format.

Spectrum Fantastic Art : Every year or so, Arnie and Cathy Fenner run a competition of fantastic art (mostly fantasy, sci-fi, horror, and comic book themed), judged by a panel of very well known and established artists, and publish an art book that's well worth the money.  They are up to number 18 now, I believe, and I've got almost every single one in my collection.  Every time I pick up a new one, I spend days poring over the beautiful art within, and placing Post-It note bookmarks on any page with any art work that gets my creative juices percolating.  So far, only one gaming miniature has ever graced it's pages (a Cryx warjack painted by Alison McVey), but hopefully we will see more miniature art in the future.

Brom Art: One of my favourite fantasy artists of all time has to be Gerald Brom.  I've had the pleasure of meeting him years ago at V-Con (a modest Vancouver sci-fi convention), and have a signed Brom print hanging on the wall of my hobby room.  I own most of his art books, and while my own method of colour selection tends to be much more saturated in colour than his, I cannot help but lose myself in each and every one of his works.  Check his site out... you'll likely recognize much of his work if you're any sort of old-school gamer.  If you're interested in painting miniatures based on his artwork, then check out Dark-Age Games.

That's it for now.  I plan on posting more whenever I come across something that I think will be of interest.  If you come across anything that I definately need to check out, please comment.  Thanks!