"My advice to the women's clubs of America is to raise more hell and fewer dahlias." J.A.M. Whistler - 

James Abbott McNeill Whistler (1834 - 1903) is one of my favourite portrait painters, and one of art history's more colourful characters. His family was wealthy - in 1842 Czar Nicholas of Russia invited Major George Whistler (James' Father), a British railroad engineer, to build a railroad from St. Petersburg to Moscow for a large annual salary. James attended the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 1851, where he got first in drawing, but did poorly in chemistry. He was eventually expelled for constantly breaking the rules. Supported by a generous inheritance, he then went to Paris to study art. While copying masterpieces in the Louvre, he met Henri Fantin-LaTour and eventually networked with Courbet and Rosetti. You can see the influence of the Pre-Raphaelites - those romantic medieval dreamy paintings of women in long dresses - in some of Whistler's work. Whistler's art career had its bumps and rejections from the galleries too. Most notably, in 1877  John Ruskin wrote an insulting review of some of Whistler's paintings in an exhibit. Whistler decided to sue Ruskin for liable in what has been called the most sensational art trial of that century. Whistler was awarded a small sum of money, and the trial ruined him financially. He was forced to sell his home. Fortunately he was at that time commissioned to do some etchings in Venice, and he spent 14 months there. He had enough of a reputation by then to make a more than comfortable living from commissioned portraits, and other painting sales and eventually settled in London England. He set up house with 2 of his models at different times, and did eventually marry in 1888. His wife was the widow of E.W. Godwin a famous English architect-designer. Here's a link for you to see some of Whistler's paintings. I have seen "The White Girl" at the National Gallery in Washington, and is often the case, it is breathtakingly beautiful to stand in front of, but a photo does not half capture that beauty. Paintings by J.A.M. Whistler (Find link on my website homepage, if you are reading this elsewhere.) And, I do love this quote, especially given the time period he lived in.

"Ideas are like rabbits. You get a couple and learn to handle them, and pretty soon you have a dozen." John Steinbeck -

To be truly creative, you need ideas. Not just a few, but lots of ideas. Ideas popping up without any constraints. Fun ideas, crazy ideas - ideas that make you shout, 'Hey, nobody has tried THAT before!" Now, there could be a good reason that nobody has tried THAT before. Or, THAT may just be what your art form needs to give it real pizazz. Don't be afraid to have lots of ideas and sift through them. Some will go the way of the inflatable dart board. Others may be just the ticket to your creative freedom and joy.

"What the world really needs is more love and less paperwork" Pearl Bailey -

Amen to that, Pearl, Amen. Spread some of that round to your family for Family Day - I mean the love, not the paperwork. Although...just thinking... :)

"Paint like your hair's on fire." - Scott Lloyd Anderson - What can one add to a great idea like this? (Thanks @iTweetArt)

"Where Good Ideas Come From" - This video is an entertaining animation that talks about how the greatest inventions in science and technology came to be. In the second half, it makes a strong case for networking in order to bring out the best creative ideas.

In any creative field, we stand on the shoulders of those who have gone before, and so I see applications from this for the visual arts as well. We can't exactly have a chat with most of the great artists who went before us (and if you think you can, I don't want to know about it :) . However, taking the time to study their works can tremendously boost your own ability. It's inspiring to go to galleries and stand in front of masterpieces. If that is not possible for you, libraries and the internet are wonderful resources. Discover which past great artists have paintings that really move you. And the very best way to learn from the greats? Spend time copying their paintings (for educational purposes, meaning, not for public display or sale). This allows you to absorb some of their painting expertise in a way far superior to simple observation. You need not worry that the influence will be overly strong - your own unique interpretation will eventually shine through, in the same way that your signature is your own. In this way, you create a space where ideas can "mingle and swap, and create new forms".