For me, an amazing piece of work can often creep up on the maker, evolving along its own perfect time scale. It won't be rushed, and is a good reminder of how important it is to let go of preconceived ideas, aiming for a positive flow in the final product. So we do as much as is appropriate and possible in stages, each building on the last.
When I create work, the speed needed to capture/express the mood with color leads to mixing at a speed which can control the image as much as anything else. It is then that color seems to leads the composition, whilst I try to control the narrative, always aiming to make it look like a scene, a boat, cloud or road.
I feel my work is at its best when the result has an element of surprise held together by a structural framework of artistic skill.
But what feeds the work is the unconscious, driving all creativity. I find that I am free to roam around in color, expressing my own dialogue with the wider world fully.
As Marie Louise Lacy explains, "We are all affected by color far more than we know - pink calms us down, red gives us energy, blue brings us peace and green encourages harmony", and goes on to say, "Our confidence, creativity and well-being depend on the colors that dominate our lives."