Should art be intuitive or thoroughly thought out and planned? The truth is, there is space for both approaches. Most of the time, I combine both, with heavier leaning towards pre-planning. I start with a general idea and, most likely, a sketch, and then let my gut lead me in terms of color choices and general development of the painting. I almost never just jump in and start making art...but I really should do it more often. The little painting above happened by itself, without me having the slightest idea where I was going when I put my brush on the paper. And there you go, it's a tree, and it's kind of mystical, and there is a person :)
How do you do it? Do you trust your intuition or tend to micromanage every stroke?