Welcome to the 250th installment of A View From the Easel, a series in which artists reflect on their workspace. This week, artists paint in nothing but flip-flops and underwear as their building’s demolition date looms, toggle between spaces by the sea, and transform their studio into a giant external brain.
Want to take part? Check out our submission guidelines and share a bit about your studio with us through this form! All mediums and workspaces are welcome, including your home studio.
How long have you been working in this space?
Two years.
Describe an average day in your studio.
Monday through Friday, I arrive at the studio around 7:45am and take a look at the works before doing a glaze or spraying a few of them. I then go for a walk along Lake Champlain’s bike path bike path with my studiomate. Once back, I eat breakfast in my space while looking at my pieces. I work on two to five oil paintings at a time. I work straight to lunch, then coffee time, and work till about 4pm. Clean, sweep, and set up studio for the next day.
How does the space affect your work?
My space is not too big and not too small. It allows me to work smart. I have to be thoughtful about where I put wet paintings, where I am spraying, where finished work goes. It makes limitations that keep me from over-working pieces and stepping on canvases, and in general, encourages me to be strategic. It can be challenging because it is south-facing, but the natural light is amazing, especially in the winter when it’s very cold and gets dark earlier here.
How do you interact with the environment outside your studio?
My studio is in the historic Soda Plant, a hub for artists, small-batch businesses, and galleries located on Pine Street, which is known as the South End Arts District. I am represented by Soapbox Arts, located on the first floor of the building, so it is very convenient. I love stretching my legs, grabbing a coffee, and checking in with the gallery. It’s a great community; I can isolate myself and focus but also get to engage with others right outside my door.
What do you love about your studio?
It is mine. Everything in my studio is part of me. It’s like a 10-by-14-foot brain. I love the freedom to be able to play around with ideas, and no one gets to see them unless I invite them in. My process is really messy, so I love that I can make a mess! I love the community and the feeling that I am working every day to become a better painter, in a space that is only for one thing: painting.
What do you wish were different?
To be honest, I wish that it were bigger.
What is your favorite local museum?
The Fleming Museum of Art.
How long have you been working in this space?
Five years.
Describe an average day in your studio.
I have three spaces within my home where I work, and I alternate between them depending on the time of day, light, and weather. I work on watercolors in the morning and acrylics in the afternoon, I embroider in the evenings, I work outdoors when it’s not hot and humid.
How does the space affect your work?
My current space defines the size in which I work now, but I love the golden bright light that Florida has to offer!
How do you interact with the environment outside your studio?
My current studio is by the ocean so I have solitude, vast space, and changing skies which inspire me at all times.
What do you love about your studio?
I love its location by the ocean, the Gulf of Mexico. I love the light and the peace that surrounds me.
What do you wish were different?
I wish I had more space.
What is your favorite local museum?
The Dalí Museum.
How long have you been working in this space?
Two years.
Describe an average day in your studio.
The first thing I do is make a large pot of coffee. I’ll open the window, open my laptop, and play some music. I’ll look at what I did the day before and think about what I’m in the mood to do. This usually means drawing, or if I’m on a roll from a current piece, I’ll continue with that. I scatter my drawings on the floor and shuffle through them when I’m looking for new ideas. Some days I get in an artistic flow and work nonstop, others I wait for hours before something sparks. Normally this leads to a quick burst of fast-paced painting that can either feel incredible or disastrous. I work best in the heat, especially when I’m sweating, so I like to work in nothing but underwear and Havaianas. I would work naked but the flat across the road can see into my studio. When my brain needs a break, I go to the laptop and do some admin, apply for opportunities, email, etc. At the end of the day, I roughly clean my brushes by wiping them on the wall.
How does the space affect your work?
Having the privacy to exist alongside my work allows me to feel more connected and as messy as I need to be. Nudity is an important part of my work, and I need to be able to look at nude imagery to feel enclosed in my own world. I work on multiple pieces at once, so being able to scatter things around and pick them up months after I’ve forgotten them is also important. It mostly brings me so much happiness; having solitude when I work is a huge privilege that is hard to come by in London.
How do you interact with the environment outside your studio?
I live across the road, and the studio is situated in a decommissioned National Health Service building. There are hundreds of artists throughout the studio, and I often chat and socialize with those I see frequently, some of whom I consider close friends. Downstairs somebody has taken a studio and turned it into a gallery (Split Gallery), so people have really taken advantage of a beautiful space that is sadly a few months away from being knocked down. The local shops all know us and get a lot of business from our community: the local charity shop, the grocer, the book shop, cafes, the local pub The Camel. It’s a really nice ecosystem.
What do you love about your studio?
Sunlight, windows, security, privacy. I’ve come here almost every day for two years and spend almost as much time here as I do at home. But the light is probably the best thing. When it’s sunny outside it’s sunny in my studio. I love being able to open the window so wide that it convinces me I’m not poisoning myself from my materials, but I don’t know if I’m just being delusional. It’s managed really well by Arebyte Studios, who are a group of artists themselves, so you feel like you’re being listened to and taken care of, which is super rare in these spaces that take advantage of artists. Princess Diana also opened the building. Legend.
What do you wish were different?
That Bethnal Green Council wasn’t knocking it down to build “affordable housing,” which we all know isn’t true. Having a space that feels safe, with good lighting and security, good management, and very reasonable prices is near impossible to come by. I wish the council could see the importance of that. I wish artists were encouraged in their pursuit of stable studio spaces, but there’s always a looming end date and another building to be knocked down to make way for hideous new buildings, with lies told about their affordability and benefit to the community.
What is your favorite local museum?
The Young V&A — I go there all the time for inspiration in the playfulness of the work. Also, nostalgia.
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