Choosing a subject

An artist friend of mine (Donna Yde) asked me how I choose my subject. The answers vary. Sometimes a color comes to me and I choose the subject because I feel like painting blue or red or yellow.
Sometimes the idea that has been rolling around in my head for years is ready to be painted.
Sometimes I want to switch continents from my last painting or move to a different class within the Animal Kingdom.

This painting is all of the above. I really wanted to paint a brilliant blue. The idea has been hatching since 2009. I just painted North America and wanted to paint Africa and since my last piece focused on a mammal, time for a bird.