Happy Birthday to my Studio!

I moved into my studio three years ago today. "Once" was the first painting I finished. It is now available as a poster print to anybody who wants it! Just e-mail me and we'll make it happen. I have really enjoyed the last three years in my studio as I used to paint in the attic room of my house fighting the heat and low pitched ceiling. It's interesting to think of all the places I've painted from the beginning while living at home in high school. It started on a card table or on an old sheet on the floor in my bedroom of my parent's house. My next studio was on my desk of my tiny dorm room my freshman year of college. My next studio was on a nightstand table in my corner of my college apartment bedroom (when i was lucky I could paint in the fine art studio classrooms on campus), and then when I got married my only requirement was a two bedroom apartment so that the second bedroom could be my place to work. As Matt and I moved around from place to place, my painting things were sometimes stacked on top of the television or under the bed, but always close. We bought our first house where my studio is now in 2005. An old shop/garage was on the property out back and Matt and I earmarked it for his woodshop and my art studio. In 2008 when I "quit my day job" and began painting full time, I also began teaching art lessons weekly. I saved every penny and would be able to first pay for windows and a door, then the HVAC and insulation, then the sheetrock and mud, then the lights, then for the old concrete floor to be finished. It took two years, but finally I could move in. Three years ago today I put "Once" up on it's easel, plugged my Bose/iPod in, turned on a song and stretched out in my new space.

 It's amazing how small my studio now feels with three tables, three easels, chairs, a sink, bookcases, and all manner of art stuff here and there. I love the wall color: it's Benjamin Moore Coastal Fog. It goes green or gray depending on the light. I saw it at IKEA when I walked through looking for decorating ideas for my studio. I still have so much on my wish list but for now, I am happy to have an air conditioned place to work where I don't hit my head on the ceiling and where I can close the door and be alone to focus.

This is a sign I recently hung to remind myself to do things one step at a time. I have so many shows coming up and a difficult commission I'm currently chipping away at. I can get overwhelmed easily and drown in my schedule. It's a hopeless feeling to not know where to begin, so this little sign keeps me on track when I stop to stare at the walls.

I love my palettes. They show my thought process. They are colorful biographies of my artwork.

Look at this painting coming to life! I'm so excited about this one!! It's 30x45" and will be in my September show at Terra Nova Gallery.

No lie: this was my palette to paint the "white" flowers. In college, I had a professor say "If you want a challenge, paint something yellow." You could also apply white - painting something white teaches you to see color, because there is hardly ever any "white" in what you're painting.

Happy 3rd birthday to my studio! I can't wait to see what the next three years bring!! Thank you to everybody, Matt, friends and collectors, who have supported me along the way.