d’Arte Board

as i’ve been moving my studio, i’ve come to realize just how much energy is infused into the space in which an artist works.  my home studio enabled easy access and provided me with comfort and a sense of security.  it also doubled as a guest room, so when friends and family arrived for extended stays, i quickly gathered my essential art tools and left my little room.   i would peer in when our guests were out sightseeing to make sure my packed away materials were safe and no dog or small child had eviscerated anything.

when the opportunity to move into a shared space with a old dear friend presented itself, i jumped.  i also did my homework.   i looked at other studios in the city carefully measuring the distance/time component traversed on bike and whether there was public transport nearby.  i factored in rent which needed to be within a budget that i could reasonably afford.  after lots of visits and bike rides the original opportunity seemed perfect.

now for the move … what i didn’t know, nor could i have forseen, was the internal struggle.  that struggle being the need to redefine who i am as an artist, how i make work, and the essential need for time management and discipline.  i no longer have the luxury of “hanging out” in my home studio for an hour or so.  i must place my studio practice into the arena of commitment.  yes folks, commitment.  it’s been an easy ride for these last years and now i’ve challenged myself to shit or get off the pot.  i certainly have enjoyed the lazy jaunt to this place in my life.

i must now engage a new set of skills and inject my studio space with the energy of an artist ready to begin a new chapter … a deepening challenge and a commitment to break of out of the comfort and dive into that place where the best of my vision awaits.  it’s kinda hard, yet i’ve paid my september rent and most of my stuff is there.

i guess this means no more going in to the studio with my pajamas on.

in this transitive period the iphone comes in handy: