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This spring my husband put windows that open in my studio basement and it completely changed my workspace.  My studio had been a mess for a while; there was limited ventilation and when I would do a deep cleaning it would stir up dust and mold and I would feel sick for days afterwards.  The solution was to not do a deep cleaning and thus my studio was becoming unmanageable. 

Working in three mediums, teaching workshops, framing and shipping paintings made the studio cramped, not for lack of space but for lack of purpose.  When I returned from teaching a workshop it looked like an art supply bomb had gone off.  This year when I returned from teaching in Italy I opened the windows wide and went to work.  It took ten days, from morning to night, to sort and toss and rethink the space.  After it was finished I was reluctant to congratulate myself until I spent some time using it and seeing if I had set up systems that would be effective over time.

Now in August, I have taught a workshop, had many private lessons, painted in oil, pastel, watercolor, framed and prepared paintings for shipping and at the end of the day it takes me about 10 minutes to get it all back in order. Hooray!

My studio in late August

What you need to know is that organization does not come easily to me.  My brain is like many on the creative spectrum and I am easily distracted by shiny things.  I did make a wise choice 32 years ago when I married my husband who is very organized.  Through the compromises that make up a successful marriage I have gotten better at living in a more orderly way and have embraced how it makes life run smoother. 

The goal of the studio makeover was to define how I use the space and rethink what I need to make it as user friendly as possible.  In order to do that I have to make everything I use visible so I do not forget what I have or spend my time searching for items.

First I wrote down what I needed in my studio.

Painting: I need an area to paint in with good light and where my supplies are out in the open and easily available.  I need a corner where I can set up a still life or model and I need a good view of my monitor if I am working from a photographic reference.  This is my creative space.  I do not frame or ship here. This is for painting and writing and takes up half of the studio space.

Storage: for paintings, art supplies, teaching bins, still life objects, shipping boxes, framing supplies, business files.  The purpose of the storage is to group similar items together, keep them safe and accessible.

Office: I needed a desk to set my laptop on and drawers to hold all the little necessities that make running a business smoother.  I need a way to track paintings, contracts, receipts, competitions, and help me do what I need to do and when I need to do it.

Work stations: I need table space that is the right height and width to do various jobs such as framing, packing or sorting.  The goal is to keep the tables empty so they are ready to use when I need them.

My studio was already equipped with good lighting, wire shelves on wheels, a baker’s rack where I store pastels and watercolors, a rolling cart, 3 large wooden storage bins, television trays, and a bunch of containers that held everything from hardware to teaching supplies.  My goal was not to add more stuff but to rethink what I already had and see if it could be put to better use.  In the end I spent less than $100.00 for my studio makeover.

So here is what I came up with:

Painting

I put all of my pastels out in the open so I would always know what I have.  The smaller table slides under the large one when I need more space. The rolling cart holds the pastel pallets and I can roll it next to my easel then put it back in the corner when I am done.  At the end of the painting session I put the pastels back in the boxes.

Oils go on a rolling taboret.   There is plenty of room for a pallet, brushes, and thinner.  I keep the paint tubes and other supplies on the lower shelves. 

Watercolor: I keep watercolors in another rolling taboret.  Some of the supplies are kept in a bag with the sketch kit so it is ready to go at any time.

Plein air bag: I can grab the oils or pastels and put them in a bag which has all my other supplies in it.

Brushes: Watercolor and oil are kept in separate wire containers.  Different types of brushes are in different cans in the wire container.

Painting surfaces: Large canvases are stored upright with paracord stretched between them.  If I pull one out they all stay standing.  Small canvases get stored in boxes.  Papers for pastel and watercolor are stored horizontally.  Large papers get sandwiched between foam core.

Everything I need for painting is visible when I am in the painting area.  Items in containers are grouped accordingly and labeled.

Storage

The first question I had to ask when I looked at something was, “Do I need to store this?” If not, out it went to the trash or I donated it.  That cleared out some space.   Then I grouped the items I was storing according to use.

Frames: I strung paracord between my wire shelving to hold the frames upright.  Each frame is sandwiched between old paintings on canvas boards that have sentimental value.  That way I get to visit fond memories every time I look through my frames.

Paintings:  The problem with being an artist is that you create A LOT of paintings over the years.  Some are in the show circuit, some are waiting for new homes, some will never be shown to the public but have sentimental value to me, and some are waiting to be painted over again.  So here is what I did: Framed paintings hang on a wire display that my parents gave me – they type that you often see used at arts and crafts shows. Unframed pastels and watercolors go on the bakers rack.  I am making foam core sandwiches for each shelf that will hold similar paintings together.  Each sandwich has sheets of glassine in between where the paintings can be stored safely. That way the paper stays flat and I know where all the paintings are located.

  Small oils that are ready for framing wait on a drying rack on the framing table. Large ones are in a rubber maid container.   Canvases that can be painted over are stored in one bin and the rest of my sentimental paintings are stored in another one.

Back-drop cloths:  Rolling the back-drop cloths and storing them vertically saves a ton of space and I can see all that I have when I pull out the bin.

Still life objects:  I condensed smaller items together in baskets and found ways to store objects in each other.  My favorite is the silk flowers in the Wellies.

Shipping Material: The large expensive boxes are stored underneath the table we created by attaching a board between the wooden bins that hold the canvases. 

Teaching: I offer several different workshop topics and each gets its own bin.  I keep a master list of what I need as well as teaching supplies in each one.

Office

I used to keep my laptop on a television tray.  I replaced it with a desk from my son’s room and now all my office supplies are in one spot and it has made it much easier to manage my business. 

Drawers hold all the typical stuff of paperclips and staplers.  I also have a calendar on a clip board which is always easy to see.

White board: This is where I keep competition and show information.   I have the enter date, what was entered, shipping and other info on it.  I can wipe it away and change it how I need to.

Clip boards hang on the display and have contracts, prospectuses, and shipping info on them.

The printer is on a microwave cart away from the painting area.  Papers for printing are on a shelf.

Files are kept on a shelf with the ones I use most at waist level so they are easy to file receipts or papers as needed.

Shipping envelopes and labels are on the shipping table.

My beloved Terry Ludwig sets are on the shipping table ready to go to new homes.

Workstations

Tables at the right height are essential for work areas.  The table I was using was too low and it was more comfortable to frame on the washer and dryer. We noticed the half size wire shelving units were the same height as the washer and dryer so we turned them into tables by placing boards on top.  One unit holds my mat cutter on top and framing supplies underneath.   One is an empty space above my teaching bins where I can pull them out prepare them before a workshop.  The other workspace I mentioned before is between the wooden bins and serves for framing and shipping.

It is still a work in progress and I have a ways to go until it is all in order but now it is usable and I can continue to work on areas when I take a break from painting.  Overall I am very happy with my studio.  It is a space that functions as a creative hub but also as a business.  I am enjoying the fresh breeze that blows through the windows and you can’t beat the commute.

This is my daily commute to work.