Art Process Map/Reflection v1(!)

Often I find a good way to think is through documentation - typically writing. It can seem a bit dry, but I find it forces me to organise my ideas and helps me capture my reflections. I've been reflecting a lot on my 'process' so I thought I'd try to 'document' that. 

Click on the image if you want to be able to read it! Obviously it's not as neat in real-life as the diagram makes it look, but I'd say these are the major steps I go through. This is the 'shape' of how I engage with ideas and turn them into art - it's not a production line (alas?)

To expand on each:

• Inspiration: Some initial idea that I 'notice'. That might be an idea that floats into my brain and I think 'huh', or it might be a physical thing I notice, and notice my noticing... Following some very early advice from JK, I've been paying a lot of attention to noticing, and it's really helpful. One of the things I've really noticed since I started making art, and since I started the course especially, is that I'm constantly thinking and looking and noticing and wondering...
• Motivation: I notice a lot of stuff, some of which I forget again almost as quickly... Some of which I can't stop thinking about, but only idly, and some of which makes me go "YES! I really want to do that!". If I'm not really excited (dare I say 'compelled') to do something, it goes into the backlog (a bunch of emails in my alter-ego's inbox) to mature. Sometimes these ideas pop back up, often they slowly sink deeper and deeper... It's amazing how something that seemed like a great idea on Monday can seem boring or trite by Wednesday!
• Creation: This is where the rubber hits the road (as they say in certain types of corporate circle). Within this area, there are three types of activity - 1) planning and researching 2) experimentation either directly or using separate 'doodles' and 3) active making of stuff
• Reflection: Sooner of later, I either run out of time that day, or need to do some more focused research, or occasionally run out of energy. I use this to think about how it's going, notice flaws, think of new connections etc
• Final Reflection: Eventually I think I am 'done' with a piece [how do I know?] and I'll then typically let it sit for a couple of days to give me some distance from it. I'll then decide if I am really done. If I am not, I'll go back to doing more cycles of creating and reflecting. If I am, I'll move to 'close' the piece
• Closure: For me to feel like a piece is finished, I go through a 'ritual' - I'll post it somewhere (usually instagram) and then I'll move the files to the 'finished' folder and also back them up to Google Drive
• Revisit: Occasionally I'll consider a piece to be 'done' but then decide I want to do something more with it. Occasionally this will be to further refine it, but most often it will be to create some sort of new work derived from it e.g. by incorporating AI, or reusing some elements in a new way
• Backlog: As mentioned, this is where potentially good, but not very exciting ideas go to mature... Typically they will end-up being remixed with something new which suddenly makes them more exciting! Most of these ideas are just emails in my alter-ego's inbox (I mail him/me when i have an idea) but some are half-finished on my inbox

I am very motivated by ideas, but not always so motivated by finishing things ;) I try to have a rule that I don't start a new idea until I have finished some of the old ones... But I've started to let that slip - because 1) I'm getting more confident that good ideas have enduring appeal to me and 2) I'm doing more physical stuff that take TIME and it's fun to be adding layers to a mask while I'm waiting for more cheese wax, and making 3d renders while I'm waiting for the mask to dry etc