As an artist, it’s always a great feeling to hear that my work has inspired someone.
So I’d like to take this opportunity to acknowledge a few of the artists whose work and teachings have inspired me over the years. I feel that their dedication and creativity has helped me to become a better artist.
Sebastian Kruger
Kruger, for me, is the master of faces. Ever since I first saw his caricature paintings, I was hooked. I had never seen such realism and expression in a painting before, and it was this that really got me interested in caricature when I was a teenager.
Jason Seiler
Having struggled to refine my caricature skills for years with little real improvement, I eventually discovered the work of Jason Seiler, and this was when I started experimenting with digital painting. I took Jason’s Art of Caricature class at Schoolism, and my artwork improved in leaps and bounds in just a few short weeks.
A lot of what I now know about painting was learnt from Jason Seiler.
Disclosure: The link to Schoolism above is an affiliate link. This means if you click on the link and then sign up for a course, I will receive a commission (at no extra cost to you). I only ever recommend products or services that I am confident will provide value for my readers.
Robert Liberace
I discovered the paintings of Robert Liberace while reading Portrait Painting Atelier by Suzanne Brooker, and I was mesmerised by the beauty of his portraits. I’ve bought a couple of the instructional DVDs from his site, and again, my painting has improved a lot just from applying the insights that he offers.
Jack Vettriano
My Nanna always had Jack Vettriano prints hung in her living room when I was a kid, which I probably found quite boring at the time, but as an adult, I really love the emotions he expresses in his paintings, and the classic appearance and setting gives them a nostalgic feeling that I like.
A fellow self-taught artist, Vettriano is also a very down-to-earth guy who doesn’t take himself or the art world too seriously, which I really like about him.
Share your inspirational artists here
I’d love to hear who your biggest sources of artistic inspiration are. Please feel free to leave a comment below and let me know who inspires you and why.
Those are some great artists, I love discovering or re-discovering talented people. Some contemporary artists who inspire me are A. Andrew Gonzalez, Tim Gagnon (Who has some GREAT speed painting Youtube videos) , Lori Rase Hall and David Irvine (He creates wonderful and hilarious paintings of monsters on all sorts of materials)
I recommend checking out all of them! 🙂