Should art be spontaneous or deliberate?

Looking at Art:

There is something mysterious about looking at a work of art when it invites you to wonder how it was made and how the artist brought the piece to its conclusion. Some art appears to have been created very quickly as though the artist’s sure hand knew how to proceed from start to finish all along. Eric Yi Lin, who teaches and demonstrates watercolor painting techniques, said that fast painting usually results in poor results and even though his work looks spontaneous, watching his process allows you to see the care and time taken to create beautiful watercolors. Syd Solomon, an abstract painter who has a retrospective exhibition at the Ringling Museum of Art, said that he was always trying to balance the spontaneous and the deliberate when making art. I think this core principle is a key to the fabulous paintings he produced.

Work in the Studio:

The spontaneity in my art comes into play when I consider ideas for the work and then again, when I look at the piece and allow my intuition to suggest ways to move forward. The dialogue with the art in progress suggests possibilities that may produce the best and sometimes, the most unusual results. The deliberate part of the process is in the reevaluation of what has been done and in considering how to improve upon it. The playful part of the creative mind can be wonderfully spontaneous, but without serious critique, the results can easily fall short.

Two Heads Are Better Than One, 13” x 9” x 8”, Ceramic Sculpture with acrylic patina. When I began the sculpture Two Heads Are Better Than One, I knew I wanted it to have a face. As the piece evolved, I discovered that a second face could be added. The design included abstract swirling forms, which seemed to suit the transition from one face to the other.