How do you decide what to paint? I'd love to get feedback on this as we Artists are always trying to fill the well of creativity and keep our subject matter fresh and new. Some of my ways are to take photographs when I am out and about...even if I don't end up painting any of those subjects, I find that it takes my focus off the anxiety of what to Paint and gets me noticing my environment and all the beauty that surrounds me.  Another is to look at art magazines and find the art that wows me. What is it about the images that draw me. The brush work? The color palette? Edges? Would a new color combination get my creative juices flowing. How about visiting a favorite contemporary artists web sites? That often sparks and idea from my own stack of references or reinforces an idea of my own that I was on the fence about. Painting with a friend is a tremendous help.  Sometimes when I am stuck, a friend will give me an assignment. Like paint a sea gull series. I did that one week and ended up sell two of them on Facebook immediately. I may have stayed in stuck mode without her prompting and without a healthy balance in my pay pal account! The cow above is an example of a prompting from an artist whose workshop I had taken. She said that I should be able to paint a cow from my imagination at this point so I did. And I loved it. She's a little more whimsical than my other cows done more as a portrait of that particular cow. She still has the feeling that all cows give me of sweetness and innocence. So get busy and fill the well and please share in the comments how you find inspiration!