My journey home was fuelled by the inspiration of the afternoon, musing on Odundo’s strength, on her talent and her work. For some, like her, to create is not a choice: it is an existential need. And, in this time of global recovery and reflection, as resources tighten and humanity itself tries to regain its strength, museums and galleries also play a necessary role in recuperation, as spas for the soul. They are spaces where we can enjoy the most glorious manifestations of that fundamental human drive to make, to create, to build, to be.
Making is the driver of our earliest intelligent compulsions. Before we walk and talk, we exhibit a desire to make, to craft, to construct – and that compulsion links cultures across geography and history. It unites and makes sense of us, and when fate threatens us, it could be our life raft. From the work of our most lauded artists to our earliest daubs, to the manufacturing and creative sectors that underpin our economy, making underwrites who and what we are.