More Thoughts on Inspiration

It's interesting to think of how inspiration works.  As I was preparing to paint my piece for last week's 52WEEKS::Storytellers project, I began thinking not only about the rainbows mentioned in the quote, but about the sea as it was the title of the autobiography, which got me thinking about fabric my daughter selected for an upcoming project (view her website here).  The fabric was inspired by a Butterick pattern by Gertie based on a cheongsam which Kate initially saw in her favorite movie titled In the Mood for Love by Director Kar-wai Wong. 

The pattern on the fabric, in turn, reminded me of the woodblock print titled The Great Wave off Kanagawa by Japanese artist Hokusai in the early 1800's and captured, for me, the title of the story, The Big Sea.  The background colours of the base of my painting reflect the rainbows mentioned in the quote and, so this became the inspiration for the entire painting.

There are times when I know exactly the route my brain takes in order to make these connections, but there are others when I don't know where it came from, but it was simmering all along.  Dreams help me make connections, as do books, movies, music and the world around me.  I'm guessing this is the way for everyone, but if not, I would love to hear your thoughts on inspiration.