My Studio

My Studio Setup

Recently, a group of blogging artists shared photos of their studio space, and it inspired me to rearrange and organize my own space, so I thought I would share it with you. There is nothing glamorous about my studio as it is housed in my garage, but I am grateful to have a space set aside for painting. Since I am working in a small space, it is essential that I keep the clutter to a minimum. I have rearranged this space several times, trying to make the most of my limited square footage; each time purging all the unnecessary items, to help keep the chaos to a minimum.

Over the past few years, I have incorporated different tools to help my productivity. As you can see, I use Carol Marine's Panel Holder on my easel for my smaller paintings; it is a great tool for keeping the panel in place, in addition to allowing you to paint off all four sides of the painting.

For my palette, I typically cover a 16" x 24" piece of Masonite with grey palette paper for a large mixing area, however, for this small painting I just used the 12" x 16" Paper Palette Pad. After a long day of painting, it's nice to have easy clean up with a disposable palette. Now, if I can only hire someone to clean my brushes, it is my most dreaded chore.

Still Life Setup 

It is every artists dream to have north light in their studio, myself included, but for now I use artificial light. After doing some research, I bought a basic flourescent shop light with Lumichrome Full Spectrum Lamps to hang over my easel. For my still life set-up, I use a GE Daylight 6500K spiral bulb.
 I do not have a still life shadow box, therefore, I use a large bookshelf with adjustable shelves to control the lighting and perspective of my subject.

Still life Prop Shelves

My collection of still life props is growing, as you can see I have an affinity for glass objects. I love finding new props at local thrift stores, but I am running out of space.

Supplies

This is my supply area, I know that it would look much neater if I could put all supplies behind closed doors, but I like having easy access and visibility. I use a hanging shoe bag to store some items that I use frequently.

Favorite Art Books and Sketching Supplies

Over the years, I have collected a good amount of art books that take up a lot of space, so I decided to have my favorites within arms reach, and place the rest elsewhere.

Thank you for taking the time to visit my studio.