How to be ready when that great idea comes

Figuring out what works Collage work has become my go-to art form. After trying a bit of watercolor, line drawing, pencil, and more, collage is it.

It's the perfectly imperfect nature of collage that works for me.

It's not that things are sloppy or unfinished. No, I pay attention to detail and form, but its more conceptual than precise.

Finding the rhythm
All of my collage work is done with painted sheet music. No other papers: no book pages, receipts, or found paper. Just sheet music.

That, too, took a while to figure out.

There are no distracting words on the page and I like how the music adds texture to the pieces I cut.

And I've learned it best to keep a supply on hand. A stack of painted sheets. An assortment of reds and yellows, blacks, grays, and greens. Blues, purples, and pinks. Each with varied amounts of paint, rough edges, and dry brush strokes.

Ready when the ideas are
If I have an idea, I like to sit down and start in. If I have to begin from scratch, to paint the colors I want or need, I risk losing some of my enthusiasm, some of the spark that comes with having a new idea.

Having an assortment of colors on hand helps me stay with the idea, to keep my momentum.

I've been running on scraps for a few weeks now and I can feel it holding me back. Little bits of paper cut from larger sheets. Yesterday I ran out of the green I wanted. Lots of scraps, but not enough to finish what I started.

It's time to take stock ... and restock.

Painting the sheets has become part of the process. Part of the preparation.

Be sure you've got what you need to get started. It could make all the difference.

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How to figure out what to do