But is it art? -az

I considered whether or not to talk about my recent studio update because I did not consider it art in the traditional sense. However, when I shot an email to Karin telling of my latest decorating adventures, she said 'Blog it'.

 I used to have a studio out of my house, but life became busy and going to the studio was no longer practical. Not to mention, I was so pressured to do art when I got there that all inspiration left me the minute I unlocked the door. I did have a small home studio which consisted of my grandmother's dining room table and my favorite pottery lamp.

When I closed up shop at my away studio, all that stuff needed a new home. Naturally, disorganization prevailed in my home studio until I could not stand it anymore. As you can see, it was messy, bland, and rather white.

To start, I cleared out my book case that was full of random stuff make way for art supplies and sketch books. I relegated some art supplies to the spare bed room, garage, and under beds and bureaus. The pictures on the wall got hung elsewhere. I refinished my heavily abused grandmother's table by using Restore-A-Finish and coated it with beeswax which produced beautiful results. For protection, I had glass cut for both my table and my big plastic drawers. For storage and for my clamp-on lights, I had a hutch custom made for grandmother's mahogany table which I stained an obnoxious cherry blossom color.  They call it cherry but it looks like purple to me.

The hutch after & plexi-glass shelf



One of the weirdest but useful  things I have is what I call a plexi-glass shelf. It sits on top the custom shelf. It is just a piece of plexi-glass shaped like the letter 'c' but it helps to keep everything from falling off the shelf. Sarah and I found it in a sign maker's trash.                                                                                                                                                                                                        I spray painted and stenciled my multiple mini drawers, my faded photo boxes, and my two bulletin boards. The greyhound stencil is my own creation. Fern  and leaf stencils created by Mother Nature. The circle/bulls eye stencil is from a plastic olive jar. 

Below is a chalkboard that I chose to spray paint, stencil, and wire to use as an inspiration board. 

Below, I had very large 'salt pigs' made for my markers which I love. They are made by

Lindsey Epstein (www.crystallinehorse.com).  They are held on a very lazy large Susan for accessibility.  Spread through out my space is many handmade pottery pieces that I made, bought, thrifted, was given, or found. The bird was made by Sarah. The blue coil pot is of my own making many decades ago. 

Here is my studio space now. There is more to do but it is so much better. 

*az*