Where ART Lives Magazine Volume 2 Number 3 | Page 75

In what town and state is your art studio located?
Grand Junction, CO
What is your favorite part about your studio?
My studio is roomy and is filled with my art, my art supplies,
reference books that I’ve collected for over 40 years, and odds and ends that I’ve
squirreled away for decades, hoping to use them in art projects. My studio has huge
windows and my kitchen garden is outside of my studio. There’s a fountain out in the
courtyard and some large grasses that attract the birds. I have a couch down there
that has plenty of pillows and warm, soft throws. I meditate there, nap there, sketch
and read there. I have a decent speaker in my studio so I can listen to music or
audiobooks. What’s not to like?
Would you call your studio messy or neat?
That depends upon where I am in a project! Between projects I straighten everything
up, scrub the floor, vacuum the rugs, put stuff away, reorganize art supplies, and
generally neaten and freshen everything up. But when I’m in the thick of a project
it’s a mess! Every surface is covered with paint, brushes, palettes, references, books,
and papers. Sometimes I find a dirty coffee mug or dish lurking under a pile of
whatever. The disorder is meaningless when I’m in the middle of a project.
Is your studio located in your home or somewhere else?
My studio is in my home. I’m fortunate to live at the foot of the Colorado National
Monument and there are beautiful views in all directions. I know that some artists
prefer to paint with other artists, but I prefer solitude when I paint. I like the peace
of my home and the birdsong out my windows.
What do you do to set the creative mood in your studio before you begin
creating art?
I’m usually so excited to get into my studio and get going that I don’t have to alter
my frame of mind. But sometimes, if I’m particularly weary, I’ll light some candles
and consciously invoke a sense of peace. Typically, no matter what state I’m in when
I go to my studio, I’m in a much better head space if I can paint for a few hours.
After decades of doing art, as an illustrator and fine artist, I find that I am, at my
core, a painter. And there’s no substitute for going into my studio and making stuff.
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