Art isn't created in a vacuum, though it’s often experienced in one.
Making art is the creative process of absorbing, interpreting, and reimagining the world around us. While the labels we use—like "inspiration," "homage," "original," or "imitation"—try to define this process, they often fall short. Creativity is fluid and subjective, and resists simple categorization.
Friction occurs when artists ignore or deny their influences. This creates a gap between those who unconsciously reinterpret the world and those who consciously embrace their inspirations, leading to misunderstandings about creativity and originality.
The truth is, all artists draw from their surroundings, blend these influences with personal experience, and create works that reinterpret the world as much as they see it. Recognizing this interconnectedness frees us from the myth of originality and lets us embrace creativity as a shared, communal act.
In doing so, art transcends personal expression and becomes part of a larger, ever-evolving conversation.
