How long?

In addition to copyright and creativity questions, I often get asked "how long does it take you to create a piece", when I give a presentation or have an exhibit. Without meaning to be evasive, I respond by saying that it is really difficult to answer that question. I have rarely created a composition in a single setting (as in, almost never). In addition, as I have written about in the past, my creative process relies on emergence of ideas after much exploration and experimentation with various elements. That is, it is highly unusual for me to have an idea in my head, that I then try to express in a composition. I have hundreds (thousands?) of pages of interesting images kind of "floating around" my studio space that I "play around" with somewhat chaotically -- waiting for interesting compositions to emerge. Sometimes compositions take weeks, or months, to come together fully. So it was interesting this weekend, when this composition emerged so quickly. I had come close to finishing the "microscope slide" piece (I still have to figure out how to mount it; and I still need to apply the UV varnish on the individual pieces); so I started cleaning up my workspace a bit and was looking around at some elements that I had previously coated that were strewn about the studio. As I was experimenting with pieces and placements, a composition started to emerge. Of course, the emergence of these compositions don't just happen haphazardly. Once I "see" something interesting starting to emerge, my role as an artist is to pay attention to some basic design issues, like balance and contrast. Anyway, to make a short story not much longer, here is a piece that came together in about 24 hours (from Friday night until last night). I think the title will be "Seeking a Brain #7" -- the seventh in a series which includes former actor Ray Bolger (who played the scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz).