Coming up with fresh ideas for paintings is sometimes the hardest part of being an artist. Standing in your studio, you’re desperately trying to think of what to paint next. You’re tired of doing still lifes of flowers and fruit, and you really don’t have access to a great landscape because it’s too cold, rainy or far away.
Because of these difficulties, many artists begin to work from photos they find in magazines or on websites. Reproductions can be great sources for inspiration, and it’s common for artists to accumulate a vast collection. This stash of reference material is called a morgue, and a good set of reference photos can be an invaluable aid when you need to understand the shape, color and complexity of a subject.
A Rose Is A Rose, Right?
Pick any object and try to paint it strictly from memory. Then, find a photo of the subject and see just how well you remember what it looks like. Chances are, you know what the basic shape is like, but when you get to the details, your memory is rather shaky.
Observation is a key to representational art, but our poor gray cells can only remember so much. If you don’t have your subject in front of you for reference, you need a photo to refresh your memory. That’s why a well-stocked morgue is so handy. If you want to paint a rose, but none are available, thumb through your file on flowers and find several roses. Now you can see the exact details. Your floral still life is back on track, and you’ll be able to paint a convincing bouquet of roses.
However, remember that you’re using those photos as references. If you copy a photo, that’s called a derivative work. The person who took the photo is the owner of the work. If you copy the photo, you’re infringing on the owner’s copyright. In order to copy the piece legally, you need the express permission of the photographer. If you’re working from a stock photo in a commercial photo library, you need to buy the right to use it.
Who’s Going To Know?
If you are truly practicing, with no intention of ever displaying or selling the piece, making a copy of a subject is just a little secret between you and your easel. But, what if the painting turns out great? What happens if you’re so pleased with your work that you want to submit it to an exhibition or display it in a gallery show? It’s really not allowed. If questioned about your source, you’ve got some embarrassing explaining to do. The point is, don’t waste your time, talent and supplies painting something you really can’t call your own creation. Use the photos as a guide, a source of clarification, and create something that’s an original piece.
Create A Morgue
In days long ago, before computers, tablets and smart phones became a part of everyday life, a working artist cut out reference pictures from magazines and other print work. If the artist was handy with a camera, and had the funds for processing, he may have created his own photo images. A standard filing cabinet could hold a world of visual information that was an artist’s pride and joy.
Today, you can capture images to keep in files on your computer, a flash drive or on a cloud server. These digital files never become dog-eared, splattered with paint or misfiled. You can use your digital camera to take unlimited shots, or you can search the Internet for royalty free images.
There’s loads of free images you can use as reference for your artwork. Just use your favorite search engine to look up Free Reference Photos. To get you started, here’s several popular sites:
- http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/
- http://www.morguefile.com/
- http://www.wetcanvas.com/RefLib/
Just Say No, And Do Your Own Thing
A discussion of royalty free material and intellectual property, copyrights and their legal definitions is important if you are concerned with your liability in using another artist’s image. However, if you don’t ever copy an image, you’ll never have to concern yourself with the intricacies and muddy legalese that comes when you infringe on someone’s copyright. It’s the easiest way to go, and you’ll never have to apologize for taking undue credit.
When you begin mastering your craft, showing your work and actually getting paid for your art, you should investigate the ins and outs of copyrights for artists. You’ll want to protect yourself and your work. But for now, just worry about getting the paint on the canvas and not in your hair. You can agonize over your intellectual property rights when you’ve painted something worth copying.
Browsing a morgue is a good activity for a rainy afternoon when you’re between projects. Your collection can inspire you, turn you in a direction you hadn’t considered or give you impetus to complete a half-baked idea you’ve started and abandoned.
If you haven’t begun a collection of reference material, there’s no time like the present to start. Whether you’re snipping pictures from glossy magazines or copying and pasting digital images into a computer folder, your efforts will reward you with fresh ideas, a clear view of your subject, and no loss of gray matter from undue speculation over your memory’s infallibility.
