Work Comes from Work

I put all of my drawings up on my wall after I finish them. Mostly to keep them safe from ink spills, paint splatters or my own clumsiness. It's nice, because they are all in a huge group hanging over my bed, so I get to see them every night before I go to sleep. This is new - I used to not keep my own art on the walls. I had thought it would be too self-referential, too self-involved. But I've found that when working on a body of work like this that self-referencing is actually very important. Having all the drawings grouped together gives them a chance to speak with each other. Each drawing informs all other drawings. Sometimes an experimental piece leads to a whole new group of drawings that never would have happened had I not been staring at that experiment 24/7. Much easier to get into the creative "flow state" when I am surrounded by my  previous attempts. 

All of this reminds me of a quote I read the other day by John Cage, "Work comes from work". Couldn't be more on point for me right now. It is as if I have started an avalanche. It all started with one drawing. Then came another, then ten more, and on, and on, and on. For my life in this moment, it has become the main priority. My Work > everything else.