Inspiration: The First Step If we create from the heart, nearly everything works. If from the head, almost nothing. ~ Marc Chagall The first step allows you to absorb the beauty of nature. You can be inspired by any number of aspects in a natural setting. The important thing is that you recognize what stirs you. Let that spiritual force propel your painting. Although this is the single most signifi- cant step to painting with expression, strangely, it is often overlooked. Get in touch with your emotional response to the landscape, otherwise you will have nothing to communicate to the viewer. Take advantage of all your senses: sight, sound, touch, smell and taste. Look this way and that, until you find one view that attracts your attention more than others. Take a moment to ask yourself, "What is it about this place that I want to take home with me? What do I want to remember?" That is the element you need to emphasize in your painting. Always refer back to your original source of inspiration. My quest is to produce paintings of beauty, originality and meaning. This initial step reminds me to put first things first, to reflect on what inspires my sight and my soul, and incorporate that essence in my artwork. As Paul Cézanne said, "Painting from nature is not copying the object; it is realizing one's sensations."