Something I have been thinking about a lot lately - and a response to a conversation I had yesterday with another artist who felt the same way...
Artists often feel compelled to create things that don't demand to be created - other than to scratch their own itch, satisfying some unexplained compulsion. Often it's to see something tangible that only exists in their head, sometimes it's a response to the world around them. It can be a myriad of prompts, but creators gon' create!
I think when I get too focused on where I will be showcasing work, and how I will show it, I start to get stuck in my head about why people NEED to see it. Often that's not a question I can answer. But when I consider the entirety of my creative experiences and what they do for my life, it makes me realize that the answer is within the question. It needs to exists because I felt a need to make it, and its existence serves me - even if it serves no one else.
But chances are, if I needed to see something this bad, then someone else needed to see it too, or it would at least be a catalyst for some necessary dialogue. I feel that my creative life should show up in ways that don't first require me to explain why. If I create, then it should be somewhat rare that my consumption is not affected, or "polluted" by my own creative process. The home I rent or buy should look like MY home, the clothes I buy should look like MY clothes, I should have writings, music, and performances that speak to my vision of the world, and make it very clear WHY these things needs to exist. The existence of anything I can and will create should be as absolutely necessary as my own existence...
Because you know what?! I do not NEED to exist, but I'm here, and I'm sure as hell going to behave like the world needs me!