One of the essentials of creativity is M A D. It is also known as O T D, but they amount to
the same thing. M A D stands for “Make A Delivery”, O T D for “Out The Door”.
These concepts resonate with the idea, long since proven effective, that writers
write, painters paint and pizza makers make pizza. It also says that if you
want to be an apple vendor you better have apples in your apple cart. The idea
goes beyond commercial considerations
A kind of karma takes place when a work of art goes out the
door. Even as a gift to a friend or for charitable purposes, finding a home
outside the workshop or studio completes the circle. The artist can rationalize
that while the work I still his or her very own, it has a more illustrious
future on someone else’s wall. It marches out to create good will, win friends
and influence people. When a work hangs in a gallery or some other space, it
begins its true life. At least it is on its way from orphanhood to finding a
home and a family. We artists have to realize that our work is our principle
currency, a source of joy and the bringer of a lot of good in our lives.
Making a delivery has the effect of clearing the mind as
well as the studio. Then there is something about the void that needs to be
filled. It seems to me that art is about new beginnings and new challenges.
P.S. “When one door closes, another opens.” Rojas 1465- 1538
Excerpted with permission…….The Painter’s Keys