Art seems to be a map of the past and possibly a glimpse into the future.
Recently my father uncovered some of my old school work books. Stored in his basement and long forgotten, the books provided very interesting images. One, showed my illustration of Dad driving his brand new blue car. It was a Ford I think and I also remember the difficulty of the day trying to recall the relationship of the front and drivers side window.
I would contrast the early drawing of the car with a painting made years later while a student as well. This painting is rendered full size and measures over 18 feet long by 6 feet high. The feeling of creating a realistic image of the object was about the same as near as I can recall.