There’s a saying in the country that firewood keeps you warm 7 times - when you cut it, when you split it, when you load it, when you unload it, when you stack it, when you carry it in the house, and when you burn it.
Art is the same way. Art is gratifying many times - when an idea inspires you, when you are creating the work, when you edit it, when you review it, when you prepare it for exhibition, when you it exhibit, when you share it with others, and when you go back and look at it (even years later).
I might get inspiration for a photograph of an idea in nature. I go out and spend time in the outdoors creating the photograph. I go home and work on it and bring more ideas into the piece while editing it in, say, Photoshop. I am “kept warm” when I review the photo in the editing process. It’s gratifying to post the photo in an exhibition or online and to share it with others. I get a glow from looking at the photograph a week, a month, a year, or even a decade later.
The same is true with drawing or painting. I get inspiration, create the work, review and edit it, and enjoy multiple times after creating it.
Art keeps you warm many times!