Most of my reading is based on what I'm working on. I did a series of paintings based on the seven deadly sins, so I read Dante and then Milton's 'Paradise Lost.' That was a bit hard going.
I mostly paint animals I'm familiar with, but I did a series of paintings of ravens, so I read everything about them.
The great thing about a painter is that he or she lives on - I mean, Andrew Wyeth is more in his paintings than he was walking around.