Curious Meanderings from an Artist's World

Like modern archeologists, my family and I are amazed at what ancient relics abound a mere 9 feet below my bedroom floor. The floor of my original studio has at last been rediscovered down there, fully intact.  No, it wasn't buried under nine feet of earth. It was buried, however, under several feet of furniture, books, pillows, blankets, boxed up art supplies and pottery paraphernalia.

Briefly for those of you who missed earlier studio posts, I opened a gallery/studio downtown a few years ago and maintained it for six years. In the meantime, my beautiful home studio became a lowly storage room as grown kids came and went in between schools, jobs and homes.

During that time, insects of all ilks including that infamously murderous gang, The Black Widows, moved in and took over. The old studio thus became a sort of Hoover Town for spiders. (Not to be prejudiced or anything, but I don't work with spiders.) When I closed the gallery and moved my art stuff back home, pretty much everything was dumped into that arachnid infested room on top of what was already there. Though Bill and I did manage to make other studio space downstairs, it was dark, damp and cluttered. As a result, I haven't done any serious artwork since last December.

Maybe I shouldn't admit that to you, but like George Washington, I cannot tell a lie. And since art is an artist's best therapy, you can imagine that I am indeed on the brink of losing that little chunk of brain where I like to store my sanity. (I think there's a slow leak in there...but nothing that slapping a little gesso onto some raw, newly stretched canvas wouldn't cure.)

For the next couple of weeks, my son Travis, a construction supervisor and excellent carpenter I might add, is available to help me restore the above mentioned beautiful studio. Thank God...and thank Travis, his wife Jennipher and my grandson Aeden who are helping. 

Day before yesterday, we annihilated the spiders with a couple of potent cans of insect bomb. (I feel no guilt whatsoever!) We also went to the lumber store for shelving supplies. Yesterday, Travis attached 12 feet of shelves along the brick wall at the back of the studio. Though there's still more to do, I now have hope where there was none before. And I am discovering a boat load of art supplies that had been packed up and stacked up, and that I'd forgotten I even owned! Exciting, huh?

Travis is taking today off from laboring in that dusty, musty future den of creativity. Meanwhile, my assignment is to acquire containers for various storage needs and make an organization plan. It's a rather daunting task, but I am up for it. In a couple of weeks, my friend, you will be seeing new work from this artist. I promise!

I'll keep you posted on the progress. Until then, make something wonderful, my dear artist friend. You have no excuse!

Deber