I was originally trained as a mathematician. I am a mathematical Platonist. In other words, I believe that mathematics is universal and unchanging and is not so much invented as discovered. That is why most scientists believe that if we ever make contact with alien life, we will communicate at first by using mathematics.

Like mathematics, art is already out there.  Every painting, for example, these dots and swirls and streaks and blobs of pigment, is in the purest sense, one of the almost countless random assortments of these particular colors.  We do not create art as much as discover it.  When I go looking for art I sometimes have a plan.  I purposely go looking for a particular imagined pattern (these patterns are more elusive than we will ever know).  More often I start flinging paint around at random.  (Do not ever let an artist tell you that this is not really what they are doing.)   I take  random walks in the vast enchanted landscape hoping I will stumble upon something interesting.  Having discovered a potential piece of art I fight and claw and wrestle trying to drag it to ground and pull it out of the wilderness into the light of day.  Sometimes I succeed.  More often I find imposters and pretenders.  These I throw back into the swirling chaos.