I always wondered where imagination comes from. Does it come from the mind or somewhere else? When I try to create a world, I wonder what is possible in architecture, clothing styles, characters of a written language, technology, spirituality, and what is possible in everything. I don’t believe anything impossible; what seems impossible could be possible centuries from now. So I try to imagine things that seem impossible in art and science; I call this dreaming, I may not be successful at this, but there could be failures and successes. If I’m working on a drawing and it doesn’t turn out the way I want it to, I scrap the picture and the whole project; frustration sets in, and later I go back to the drawing or project and find it has possibilities. What seems a failure now could be part of the success of another project. Experimentation is part of the play; it’s a way to investigate what works and what is the truth; another way of thinking about this is creation; if my intent in a project doesn’t work, it gets put away, then later, I find possibilities for this. If an idea or experiment doesn’t go well, later I imagine possibilities. I can see things I failed to look at, and I will take some aspects from this and create something new, so I always save ideas in my scrapbooks and notebooks. The writer’s notebook and artist’s sketchbooks are ideas from my inner self, a microcosm of the universe. If notes are not taken, I will lose what is given to me and will be gone forever.

Notebooks and sketchbooks are a way to unlock my mind, which has been influenced by tradition and other people’s opinions. A white piece of paper is a way to get in touch with my inner self; many ideas that come on to a page of a notebook, perhaps they are raw thoughts or complete ideas, whatever they are, these are things to play with, to experiment with, to present new thoughts and ways. Some ideas come from other people but I try to limit this because it may never fit my intent on what I’m trying to express. A notebook is closed off to the world; people will only know what I’m trying to communicate when the fruit is ripe for something written, photographed, or painted.

I try to get interested in all things and think about nature; the meshing of all things creates new ideas for me. I believe everything is in motion and change, I try to flow like a stream or river, but I’m not always successful. I try to look at history and art to see what has been done before so I don’t reinvent the wheel. Everything and everywhere is a classroom where I’m constantly learning; there is no end to relearning and seeing things fresh as a child. Curiosity is part of my life in learning and creating.