What is it that inspires or motivates you to make art? Do you want to be like a certain artist you've seen or are you trying to express something you feel or enjoy?

Personally I can't remember far back enough to a time when I wasn't making art. I've always just enjoyed making it and coming up with fantasy places and people I could make "real" enough to be seen by other people at least. Probably why I've never been as interested in drawing from life as from my imagination.

I'm inspired by many things... other artists, family, friends, animals, religion, emotions, current events... the list goes on and on.... I mostly draw 'cause it makes me happy when I do... Sometimes though, it's like a journal to look back on... I like doing that 'cause usually there's more to a draw than I realized at the time I drew it.

But I think it enhances your technical skills to be able to draw real life forms before drawing from the imagination.If you notice in college, that's pretty much all you do in your beginning art classes, use references (at least a huge majority of it).I love drawing from my imagination too, but understanding such things as anatomy and actual structures of objects come in handy when whatever you come up with, relate to these things.

yeah, that's pretty much why I've stuck with this site... I wish I was at a good place in my life right now to think about schooling, but this site and it's many artists can teach you quite a bit , as can trying out realism, I agree. That prob'ly all just didn't come out right but I think you know what I mean.... I'm very very tired right now.

I agree that life drawing definately developes your technical skils, though in my experience there seems to be a bit too much emphasis on mechanical reproduction. Nearly 4 whole years and I'm just now getting to develope the things I've been wanting to focus on all this time...

*pats spiritdweller* I'm sleepy too~ =_=

I like takeing pictures of friends or family, and then useing the poses, or expressions as reference when I draw from my imagination.

I've always struggled with still-life drawings, or specific things like people, and animals that I've envisioned in my mind. But after looking at so many different styles of art, I realised, what the heck. I'll draw what I'm thinking about. I just have to keep concentrating on how to make the detail. Looking at a lot of pictures, helps me with developing my own ideas as well, although sometimes I end up repeating some ideas. >_>

I guess mostly cartoons, movies, and music.

From my hand.

As far as using references goes, I think James Gurney put it pretty well:

Whenever I travel I try to take along a pencil sketchbook to note down anything that might catch my eye — a person’s pose, a costume, a sculpture, or a bit of architecture. Sketching helps build an artist’s visual vocabulary.You don’t really observe anything until you sketch it. Once you’ve sketched it, it’s in your brain ready to be called up. Later, when the time comes to invent — say, a wagon or a knight in armor, or an arched doorway — if you’ve sketched a real one it’s a lot easier to make one up.

The idea of creating an alternative world or just some place or character that pulls us out of the drudgery of daily life and into something fantastic is what probably inspires me most. When I would play videogames and cardgames as a kid the whole appeal of those was the imaginary worlds I got to take part in. These days I'm beginning to realize how much of an impact creative forces can make on the "real world," and it's exciting to see styles and ideas changing.

I draw because I cant

that's brilliant davinci.

I think my own art has been highly affected by things like video game, which I still play (for inspiration of course :D ), although I never draw characters from the games. It's never seemed quite right to me since my art is more about expressing myself rather than displaying what I like.

But...it's true Marcello. I draw so I can try to get better. When I see some of what these people can do, I want to try again.

'i' draw; there is no free will.

What inspires me in everything I do is to always struggle to reach a "higher plane". What Gigandas and the quote that Zack gave are entirely true. When I go on vacation and taking alot of art supplies and stuff isn't practical, I always take a sketch book, and if I happen to forget one (which is more often than not) I always stop and buy one on the way. The sketches do help, but you can visualize everything as art. I can't help doing that, anyway.

At first I wanted to see images I had never seen before, so I drew them. I was also curious because I had never drawn as a hobby, so I didn't know how my drawings would look. I quickly ran out of images to draw, so I took images from music. Music also helps me keep focused on a single thing. Well, now I've ran out of music.

My last two drawings came from "normal" things.

I think not only is it great that I can draw things I've never seen but also things I never will see outside of my drawings. If I wanted to see a ten-legged cat I could draw one, even if the drawing is the only place I'd ever see it. I feel like I have a lot of ability to go wherever I want and see whatever I want in art. Like Bob Ross said, you have the power to move mountains when you paint.

I draw so I don't kill people.
Let me explain... the way I see it, art is something you can let emotions out. Let the pad be your punching bag. Let art rid yourself of love, hate, hope, dispare, happness... what ever floats your boat. I scrible when I'm mad and do my best work when I'm happy... I look all a daze though and it doesn't happen often so....

I draw to draw. I guess I do express myself in art, but I mostly do it to get thoughts out of my head.

Dude your thoughts are cool... but your still a butt head. XP

I'll take that as a compliment...