CHICAGO — The 35th installment of a series in which artists send in a photo and a description of their workspace.
Want to take part? Submit your studio — just check out the submission guidelines.
Eileen Karakashian, Closter, New Jersey (site)
This is my home within my home where I go to paint. My work table always has old clothes that I’ve cut up to use as rags, my paints, brushes, etc. On the wall, I’ve pinned up images that I’ve collected over the years that I enjoy looking at. They are mostly postcards sent to me by photographers, way back when I was an art director in advertising.
My Christmas lights are up all year round because they too make me happy. Colors make me smile. So does good music, and that’s why my iPod docking station is by my window.
My studio is kept neat and organized, unlike the ideas in my head.
Valerie Brennan, Madrid, Spain (site)
My current studio is in my apartment in Madrid. It is wrapped in oil cloths to avoid giving my landlord a surprise heart attack.
It is small, overcrowded and has practically no natural light but in there I am free.
Kara Hendershot, St. Paul, Minnesota (site)
I live and work in the Northern Warehouse Artists’ Co-op in Lowertown. I work on several projects at once, which allows for cross pollination of ideas and techniques as my work slowly evolves. This photo is a close-up of various studies, sketches, and references for current and upcoming projects, which range from small mixed media works on panel and wood, to large scale figurative oil paintings on canvas. Annotations and brief drawings are jotted down in sketchbooks and on paper scraps, and I attached them to my easel or wall while I’m working, so that ideas do not escape too easily. I work at the easel, at tables, or on the floor, depending on the scale of the piece I am working on.
Lill Anita Svendsen, Lofoten Island, Norway (site)
My studio is my heart. I spend most of my time in this space. I am always hanging paintings on the walls to have them around me so that I can study them.
To the left is the table where I ask artist friends to sign or draw on with markers. At the back left is my printer and on the floor are some cushions where I can study paintings in progress. A duvet is also sticking out, this is good to have during the periods of “nothing works.” The pillows are also frequently used by friends who are visiting,= and decide to sit on the floor.
In the middle, behind the easel standing overhead is my latest investment: a projector. This has given me fun possibilities that I have not had before, and I enjoy transferring fragments from photos (processed in Photoshop) directly to the canvas.
To the right is my lounge chair. Mac’s place is on the floor above. My easel and paint is standing there ready for a new effort.
James Vogler, Charlotte, Vermont (site)
My studio is in a small 10’x12′ room in our Vermont farmhouse. At the moment it is enough space for me though quite crowded. It’s very difficult to get any distance from my work, but perhaps there’s an advantage to being more intimate with each canvas.
There is adequate natural and artificial light. I think the studio has a direct influence on my work because of its size and the limitations it puts on the scale of my pieces. The results could be quite different if I had the room to step back and out of my paintings.
