Inspiring Felicity

 "Springtime Joys"

Acrylic on 12"x12" stretched canvas

    Felicity, according to www.dictionary.com, is the state of being happy, especially in high degree; bliss, also, an instance of happiness. 

    The spontaneous ‘spark’ of inspiration elevates my spirits to this state – that crazy feeling that has me looking for any scrap of paper I can find just to get the idea jotted down while it’s still fresh!  Some sparks being so strong that just getting it on paper is not enough, I need to take it further, develop it into something more, something tangible…. These big creative sparks can become paintings, sculptures or even baked goods - whatever expresses it best – and my mind doesn’t completely settle until it has exhausted the idea to the best of my abilities. I guess it’s fortunate that these BIG sparks don’t happen all the time otherwise I would never get any housework done!

    Most often I push myself to stay creative. When I sit down in the evening I grab my sketchbook to doodle and sketch.  Sometimes I block in time to paint and tell myself, “Let go and just go with it, see where this takes you.”  Hey, you never know one day, that one pencil stroke in my sketchbook may be what spurs on an idea and another BIG spark is created…

    No matter how the inspiration comes, when it’s in me I always find myself quoting Marianne Dashwood in Jane Austen’s  'Sense & Sensibility', “Is there any felicity in the world superior to this?”