It is 3 a.m. I woke up to stoke the wood stove and decided climb up to my studio to paint and write. I have commented on my “Tiny” Studio. I had estimated that it was 7 ft. by 8 ft. I just grabbed the yardstick, it is 6 ft. by 7 ft. If I stand up in the center of my attic studio I have about 4 inches of clearance. I guess it is like a fish story. 42 square ft. (3.8 meters for my metric friends) in which my world of painting happens and I love this space! Though I will say, as with all love affairs, it comes with its, challenges.
I have worked in larger studios. When I visit my friend on Washington Island he has studio at my disposal close to a 1000 square feet, it is an amazing place. It feels like a church sometimes with its high ceilings. All the space I could ever need for three, four works, and all my supplies and tools. In my “micro studio” space isn’t such a luxury. My main work surface is a 32 by 54 inch drafting-style table I built for the space. To my left is the main storage solution, a shelving unit about 6 feet long, 2 feet high and 14 inches wide. I went to Fleet Farm and found the “Ultimate Deluxe” Fisherman’s Tackle box. It has seven large plastic boxes that hold about 80 tubes of paint, two medium boxes that hold my paint brushes and pallet knives, and a pocket for my broad knives. I have a second old cosmetic bag I use for my extra paint and other tools. The tackle box sits to the right of my kneeling chair, which helps to save stress on my back. To the right of me is a twin bed that I can lay a painting if one is drying or I am working on more than one piece. I try to avoid using this space as it can get cluttered pretty fast. That’s about it.
Like most artist’s studios, mine can become in a disarray in short order. One thing with the micro studio the more mess, the smaller the space gets in a hurry. I have had to get into the habit of putting things away immediately after I use it. If I use a pallet knife, after mixing the paint, I clean the pallet knife and put it in the box, put the box away. If I use some Thalo Green on a pallet. I squirt the tube, cap it, put the tube in the box and put the box away. Oh I need to use some Prussian Blue? Pull the blue box, retrieve the tube, squirt, and put it away. The one upside is I never need to search for a color, they are sorted and always put away. The only tubes that remain out is white and a couple of mediums I use on a regular basis.
I live off the grid so to speak and have solar and batteries for electricity. If I work 3 or 4 hours straight I use up about 15% of battery capacity depending which lights I use. I have one 3-watt LED bulb that lights up the studio over my head. It is enough light for about 75% of the work I do. I have 2 – 7 watt LED bar lamps flanking the bulb. When I turn those on it floods my table with all the light I will ever need. My son, the electronic genius, came up with the idea of getting a cheap car stereo, which we attached to the shelf above my table. I can play the radio or my iPhone if I want to have some sound to fill the space. In front of me I have a window that looks out to my woods. I showed a picture of my studio to the young son of a friend and he remarked, that the view looked like one of my paintings, smart kid! Yes the view affords me a meditative quality to my thinking as I look out it. Also if the attic is too warm it opens up to let in fresh air, as well as, the sounds of nature. Because of the attic space the temperature is constantly warm. As I am writing this I am sitting in 78 degrees of pleasure in shorts and a t-shirt (It is 19 degrees outside). I have a small trucker’s fan mounted to the ceiling and off to the side. It helps dry wet paint or usher the air out the window if it gets too warm.
In my life I have visited at least a dozen studio spaces. They all have a similar creative vibe to them. I have painted with a friend in her home studio that has a special fun creative vibe, especially when she is in it painting. I strongly encourage people to visit and work in other studios if they can, though I will say it will be a tight squeeze in my studio. Studios are a special space in which people find comfort in what they do. They organize and use the space to their own style and making. Sometimes you can get some pretty cool ideas by checking them out. Yet this is their work space and artistic sanctuary. All those qualities I find in my own studio. Yes size does matter, and I desire someday having a larger space to work, but the truth is when I am working I am only focused on the space and painting in front of me. My micro space is a blessing in a small package
Metsa Studio 