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Just set it down and walk away, go and do something else you like. The answer, or inspiration you need isn't going to come to you while you sit there and brood, trying hard to find it, it'll usually just come to you once you're in a mood that inspired you to start working in the first place, usually happy and relaxed, hehe. Hmm though I've got to say that anger is also a good source of inspiration, for myself and my current project at least.

Yes, also aside from anger, deviant sexual desires and fantasies can be great inspiration as well: http://vcl.ctrl-c.liu.se/vcl/Artists/Mystech/Adult/Malchik.jpg

(Probably shouldn't click if you're in public. . . or under age!)

Originally posted by Dearprudence
But... anger isn't always at my disposal. At the moment I came up with a terrific structure... but I am dead. Illustrator is hidden in the background. I look every once in while... feel happy for such a genius layout... but... I can't build upon it... I am dead. Dead.

Ahh I find myself in the same situation quite often. . . in fact the very same situation with the same program hehe. Maybe it's just a bug that Illustrator needs to work out, or at least warn us about. "Warning Illustrator may inspire you to do great things but then leave ou feeling drained and dispasionate."

My advice, again would be to leave it open, but just walk the hell away from it, go do something else that you enjoy. . . and maybe eat someting suggary that seems to help me, at least, you get more done when you are hyper.

Many artists enjoy viewing other artists works to become inspired. Just look around you and see how many works of art are similar in many respects. Sometimes a breakout artist appears on the scene but eventually they become copied as time goes by. I like to go to the public library and go through many old art magazines and books .

Most of my inspiration for writings, poems, songs and sketches come to me while I am under the influence of something, substances have a way of reaching into the deepest depths of my brain.

Drugs only cloud your mind and makes you dependant on them to "create". This leads to addiction and sometimes death from the drugs of choice. Is it worth your life to create? I'd say no so stop creating using drugs to see whether or not you can do it without being fucked up!

Originally posted by Dearprudence
When you do concept, do you blank yourselves out and just do straight brainstorming or do you (example) go outside for a smoke and contemplate the forces of the universe?

Both....they are equally effective. Also the subject matter can jumpstart inspiration without much effort whereas some subject matters need much thought and sometimes outside input.

Sadly too much inspiration can cause death of an exciting project. Too many ideas clashing is artistic overkill.

I do drugs on on occasion, I havn't gotten addicted or fucked up. One summer, I took too many, and I could feel a little clouded, but I stay in control, and I only do drugs for inspiration.

I'm not saying all people that do drugs get fucked up or addicted but many do that try them out. Look at some great artists, Divinci, Michelangelo, Donatelo, or some great thinkers Einstein, Newton or VanBraun they never did drugs and look at what they accomplished! My point is that if you need to take drugs to be creative you may not be that creative to start with. Why try to make your mind do something with drugs that it cannot do naturally? It would seem that you would be fucking your brain up more than helping it to create when administering drugs to yourself. Wouldn't you think that way to or am I wrong?

Dearprudence...... All of those people you mentioned were NOT using drugs to do those things they were doing were they? So your argument is not very good using those types of people to try and prop up your stand wanting to think that drugs somehow make people create better. My thrust is that Leanardo Divinci did many creative things WITHOUT the use of drugs and he is just one of the greatest creators we know of. If you think that by using heroin or pot you will somehow be able to become a gifted artist , you have a very big problem with reality and better listen to a good therapist soon.

i feel that if you are inspired by someone elses original work, then yours isnt literally Yours, so for my inspiration, i dont even think, when i paint something, its random unless im actually painting Something, if i draw something, its random lines im not thinking about, unless i am aiming for something in particular. I think random art is the best kind, though some dont seem interesting ...

phew- i thought i was crazy :)