The Beauty in Asking Questions

"Without a good question, a good answer has no place to go."

- Clayton Christensen, Harvard Professor

This piece, which remains untitled, came about because of a question. What would happen if I used a credit card, rather than a brush, on a special kind of watercolor paper called Yupo?

I had just taken an online class, which emphasized that as artists we are always solving problems. In order to be good at solving problems, I believe you have to be good at asking a lot of questions. Especially in artistic endeavors, I find myself asking a lot of "What if...?" questions. What if I use a different brush? What if I combine these two colors? What if I add a third color? How do I show the sparkle in an eye? How do I use blue to make shadows in the snow?

I know I have a lot more questions than answers. And not just in my artwork. I have a lot of questions about our world, our lives, how to live better, how to help others live better, and how to best solve the problems - small and large - that are a part of living.

I want to use the same positive and curious questions I use in my artwork in my daily life. Rather than ask "Why me?" or "Why do I have to deal with this?" I can ask "What if...?" and find possibilities.

This painting wouldn't have happened, just like a good answer, if I hadn't bothered to ask the question. Let's ask more questions and give the good and beautiful answers an opportunity to show themselves.