Here’s a brand new collage I’ve been working on for a while. It’s reasonable to assume that I would instinctively know when an abstract picture like this is finished. 

In actuality, nothing could be further from the truth. On the contrary, there’s never a clear, concise path in my artistic process. It has always been – and I suppose always will be – organic. It’s how I work when filming, editing, writing, painting or creating abstract photographic collages.

There is, of course, some planning involved. But I am a firm believer that from an originality perspective, the advantages of spontaneity by far outweigh the gains offered from too much forethought. 

Unless I’m working for a client who has provided a concrete, creative brief and is expecting a specific result and has a critical delivery date, I could probably continue working on a piece like this for several more days – or, weeks, even.

That said, there obviously was a point in this picture’s particular timeline where colors and shapes provided a level of visual satisfaction that allowed me to put down my palette and feel good about how it turned out.