As artists we are used to asking ourselves questions such as these:

How am I going to make this?

What am I going to make?

What materials am I going to use?

What colors am I going to use?

…and so on.

 

How often do we ask ourselves questions such as these:

Why this idea?

Why this object?

Why this material?

Why this technique?

Why this color?

Why am I driven to make?

Why did I make that?

…and so on.

 

"Why? is a starting point for self-directed artistic contemplation, meditation, and making, regardless of material and process. Many aspects of the artistic process ignore material and technique and focus on the artist and Why?