On the Hunt for Artistic Inspiration: Winter Trails

Last weekend, I decided to take a break from my writing and head into the mountains. I needed some artistic inspiration.

This blog has been a little dry lately because I’ve been working on getting serious about freelance writing – at the expense of art.

Even this mini trip to the mountains was about work. I wanted to get some high-quality photos of my own to use for my blog posts, reference photos, and design purposes. But maybe work was just an excuse to get out there.

Even in the winter, nature is pretty swell.

 

Going out and “gathering” material was a good way for me to get out of my computer-screen-and-keyboard bubble and give myself permission to stop and enjoy the scenery. (I would have smelled the roses too, but well, it’s still winter.)

Here are a few textures I thought might look good in backgrounds or Photoshop projects:

Since I was looking for textures, the three colors on this rock immediately caught my eye.

Wood and bark textures are always interesting. There were a lot of fallen and worn down trees, after a recent storm.

I’ll have to make these trips a more regular thing.

 

 

Sketches by Phone: Colorado Springs

Originally the title of this post was going to be Sketches of Home, but I liked the rhyming alternative better.

Home life is pretty dull compared to travel, but art can help you see a place through new eyes. This is a glimpse into the surroundings of my current, strangely-domestic stage of life.

Sketches of dogs asleep on my bed; my neighborhood street

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Pikes Peak from the Grand Overlook in Palmer Park.

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Trees at a trail behind the Starsmore Discovery Center

Backyard view; Colorado Springs in the distance

There’s no ocean, but I guess it is pretty beautiful out here.