Handwritten letters encouraged reflection, depth and a sense of deliberate engagement—uncommon in our contemporary landscape of constant availability. Consider your inbox, each message clamoring for immediate attention. Are our brains equipped to navigate five text messages from five different people, while in a room with another person, simultaneously? If we choose to protect our time and space for reflection, presence or creative endeavors, we risk alienation and strain on important relationships. The demand for a swift response, characteristic of the digital age, has reshaped the dynamics of our relationships. Now, choosing to call someone only once a month is misconstrued. The consequence is that our relationships are beginning to feel measured by the frequency of digital interactions.
An artist has to choose between protecting their availability to follow their compulsion to be curious, and to allow themselves the isolation needed to create, or open the door for consistent interruption to appease today's belief that delayed responses or infrequent cellphone communication conveys a lack of affinity or love.