Search Results for: clutter

In the Studio with Cara DiJulio

June 26, 2014 by Heather Filed Under: Art & Design, In the Studio, Inspiration & Education, Organize, Systems & Techniques, Tips & Resources

Thanks for joining me today for another artist studio Sneak Peek. This week I’m sharing the small studio space of SCAD MFA Fibers candidate, Cara DiJulio who’s space and work I saw back a few months ago at their Open Studio night. I left Cara a note and she responded and we made arrangements to meet up on my last visit to Savannah. I love sharing this sneak peek because as most students know, even if you are lucky enough to be assigned a studio space while you are in school, it’s likely very small. So this small space studio highlights efficient use of space and storage including vertical, horizontal and “layering” (storing below other pieces etc).

HKPS::What age did you suspect or know you were an artist?

CD::In the sixth grade my art teacher told me that she thought my project was at an ‘advanced level’ for a sixth grader. It was a perspective drawing of the word “STAR” with a drop shadow… (so, it was pretty cool). I thought I was on top of the world. I think that’s when it occurred to me that I should keep taking art classes.

In undergrad I originally intended to major in Apparel Merchandising, but I kept avoiding my apparel classes and was taking art classes instead. Even though I didn’t want to be an art major, by the end of my sophomore year I was accidentally on track for an MS in Studio Art. I eventually changed my major.

HKPS::What mediums do you work with?

CD::My primary focus is geometric repeat pattern, so I weave with the digital jacquard loom, I screen print, I free motion embroider, and I draw with pencil and gouache.

HKPS::Where do you make your art, how big is your studio and how long have you been in this space?

CD::I share a great studio space with four other (amazingly talented!) graduate students in Pepe Hall at Savannah College of Art and Design.

I prefer to work in the studio, working at home can be hard!

HKPS::When you began working in this space did you plan any systems for the overall set up or did you let things evolve organically? How did past studio spaces or systems influence this space?

CD::I tend to keep my organizational systems pretty much the same from place to place. I use a large ikea cabinet with pull out wire baskets for most of my supplies. Its great because I can see what is in the drawers before opening them.

I also like to keep my screen printing ink organized by color, visible on a wire baker’s rack.

HKPS::Do you consider yourself to be an organized person?

CD::I TRY, it’s hard! Every part of me prefers to work in an organized space, and I’m so much more focused in an organized space, but I’m a messy worker.

The organizational structure exists in my studio, whether things get to their homes on a regular basis is a different story!

HKPS::Have you ever worked with another artist or gallery? If so did you learn any systems for organizing?

CD::Nope!

HKPS::How or where else have you learn your organizing habits and systems ?

CD::Mostly, my mom. She is the most organized person I think I’ve ever met. Everything has a place, and is in its place, at her house.

HKPS::What types of schedules, systems, tools or processes do you use to help maintain organization in your studio? Would you like to share any tips?

CD::I love organizing things by color, it makes life a lot easier. I also have my thread organized in an old silverware organizer! It works so well, I’ve tried other systems but this seems to work the best.

I think I’m best at staying organized when I’m conscious of my space, and conscious of my studio mates (no one likes looking at a messy desk)

HKPS::What kinds of materials/tools do you find challenging to keep organized or locate when you need to use them?

CD::Refolding fabric nicely is always a challenge for me. I also misplace needles constantly.

HKPS::How many projects are you usually working on at once? Is this due to space constraints, creative process, organizing systems or other influences?

CD::Oh, this is a tough question. It really depends. I would say, 1 to 5 projects. I can get easily frustrated, so I like to jump around with projects when I’m drawing or designing on the computer.

HKPS::How often do you purge, clean or de-clutter your supply stash and space due to space or other constraints? (ex. yes monthly/few times a year or when I feel like it, because I have visitors etc)

CD::Not as often as I should! I probably purge about twice a year. Fabric is always a really tough thing to purge, it’s also a real pain to cart around.

HKPS::Please describe how creative cycles of organization or dis-organization affect your creative process?Are there certain phases of projects that are more or less organized?(ex. I can’t focus unless things are put away, creative chaos inspires me, and things get messy as I work but I clean up at the end of projects)

CD::I like to have a clean space before I work. Frequently I’ll be exhausted when I leave the studio at night, and opt to clean up my space in the morning instead. I need to get in the habit of cleaning when I leave though.

HKPS::How much thought do you give to your artistic body of work in terms of historic value and the overall legacy you will leave behind? How do you store/archive your work or records?

CD::I don’t really think much about my legacy, I don’t typically concern myself too much with archival quality. The work I’m doing right now is still very exploratory, so its life cycle isn’t a major concern. I keep my old work in some plastic containers in my studio and in my home. (Maybe we will check back with you in a few years to see if you still feel this way?)

My greatest wish is that through seeing how other artist work we can learn from one another. There is no ONE correct system or way of organizing. There are as many creative systems as their creative makers! My aim is to highlight these unique makers in each interview. I was so grateful to Cara for responding and inviting me back to see her studio and ahow organizing affects her creative process. Please check out her work over at her website (which is still under construction) or on Instagram (@caradijulio) and keep your eye on her since she is an emerging artist and designer! As for this series, please check back here or better yet, sign up for my emails on the top left of any page so you don’t’ miss any of the amazing artists in the near future ‘Inside the Studio’!

* Inside the Studio was my brainchild in 2011. There are a lot of popular studio features on the web and in magazines but I’m specifically interested in showing how organizational process influences the artists studio work. These photo’s are not styled and are typical of how the artists working studio looks. I request that each artist leave their space as it would be on a daily basis (just like I ask my clients). This series is meant to highlight how artist REALLY work rather than showing STYLED shots (popular in home and organizing magazines and blogs). I’m sure just like me, you are fascinated by the “behind the scenes” sneak peek into these artists working lives!

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In the Studio with Hollis Hamonds

June 12, 2014 by Heather Filed Under: Art, In the Studio, Inspiration & Education, Museums & Galleries, Organize, Systems & Techniques

Thanks for joining me today for another artist studio Sneak Peek. There have been some fantastic creative events and exhibitions here in Charleston over the past month or so and we just wrapped up Spoleto festival which is always a favorite for locals and tourists. One of the great exhibits on display right now at Redux Studio’s is the work of Texas artist Hollis Hammonds::Worthless Matter. I knew after reading an article or two about her work that I had to see the exhibit and was really hoping she would agree to this interview and she did, yeah for all of us! Here is a short blurb from straight from Hollis’ bio page and this pretty much makes it clear why I was fascinated by her work and how her experiences have shaped it.

“Exploring consumerist culture through evidence of accumulation, hoarding and collecting, piles of rubble permeate the works of Hollis Hammonds. Growing up in semi-rural Kentucky, the youngest child of depression era parents, her surroundings were those of cold war stockpiling, nick-knack collections, and junk-yard recycling. After surviving a house fire in her teens, piles of burnt keepsakes created a lasting impression on her, of the impermanence and worthlessness of superficial possessions.”

HKPS::What age did you suspect or know you were an artist?

HH::Not sure, but I always drew from a very young age, in church, on the bus, in school. I was told in the 5th grade that I had talent. I guess I was particularly good at drawing horses that year. I didn’t have any formal art classes though until high school. I think I was always an artist, although as an undergraduate I loathed the term, finding it pretentious and seeing it as something that was possibly unattainable. It has only been in the last few years that I’ve become comfortable with the title of artist.

HKPS::What mediums do you work with?

HH::I use all types of media, but favor drawing over all other forms of art making. I’ve used traditional drawing media like charcoal, ink, pen, graphite, litho crayon on substrates like paper, canvas, vinyl fabric, and Mylar. I also have used hand cut strips of wood veneer to create wall drawings and installations. Although the works I make using wood veneer are 3-dimensional, I still conceptually think of them as drawing with line.

HKPS::Where do you make your art, how big is your studio and how long have you been in this space?

HH::I have a studio in Austin, Texas. It is modest, 4 white walls, concrete floor, 400 sq. ft. I moved into this space in June 2013, and hope to stay there for a while. It is a neutral space that’s usually organized. I enjoy the white walls as a buffer for my usually complex work.

HKPS::When you began working in this space did you plan any systems for the overall set up or did you let things evolve organically? How did past studio spaces or systems influence this space?

HH::This studio was a fresh start for me. I hadn’t had an official studio, outside of my home, since I moved to Austin in 2007. So it was a clean slate, and I knew that I needed 3 things: solid worktables, 2 chairs, and a shelving unit. It was that simple. After a few hours at IKEA I was all set. I have rearranged these few items several times since I moved in, added a few items, including a donated desk and rolling cart. My creative work tends to determine the layout of the space. If I’m making a large installation on the wall then my tables move to the center of the space, and if I need to make a suspended piece in the center of the room then my furniture migrates back toward the walls. I like to keep it minimal, simple, easily moveable and adaptable.

HKPS::Do you consider yourself to be an organized person?

HH::I would say somewhat. I do make a lot of piles, that I tend to deal with much later. I like to sort things, grouping similar things together. You can see this in my drawings as well. I like those see-thru plastic organizers where I can sort all of my tools and materials.

HKPS::Have you ever worked with another artist or gallery? If so did you learn any systems for organizing?

HH::Yes, but not really.

HKPS:: How or where else have you learn your organizing habits and systems?

HH::Probably all of my organizational habits came from my parents. My father saved everything, and organized those things by type, size, and usefulness. In the pantry were piles of plastic and paper bags filled with other like bags. In the basement of our home there was an entire walk-in closet-sized room filled with empty plastic milk and juice jugs, and 2-liter soda pop bottles. Outside, he had filled an entire shed with rusty metal tools, chains, thousands of rusty nails, nuts, bolts & screws, all sorted and in their place. It was overwhelming, since every usable space became filled over time, yet organized. It was clear that there was a system in everything he did and in everything he saved/recycled. In that world, nothing was new. Everything had a past and future purpose, even if those were completely different. Every piece of old trash or junk was a treasure to my father.

My mother on the other hand valued new and officially collectible items, designer dolls, Lilliput houses, and ceramic figurines. Each of these items was grouped with their own kind, adorning shelves and the tops of cabinets. She had a box filled with greeting cards, organized by holiday, type, age, boy, girl, and so on. Several closets in our house were stocked with gifts for birthdays and holidays to come, often wrapped in advance and labeled for whomever they were destined. The inside of the house, was just as filled as my father’s shed of metal treasures.

Organized chaos. That’s what I grew up in.

HKPS::What types of schedules, systems, tools or processes do you use to help maintain organization in your studio? Would you like to share any tips?

HH::Honestly, I purposely keep it simple. The less stuff you have in the studio, the fewer things you have to manage, and the more productive you can be. My advice is to cleanup and pack-up when each project is completed. I do like to document my work as soon as it is finished, and digital photo files are edited and organized as quickly as possible, so that the packing process may begin. Packing may entail rolling a large drawing on a tube, wrapping a framed piece in bubble wrap, or simply moving work from the working space to a temporary display space. That might be a tip… having multiple zones in the studio… working, storing, works in progress, and displaying. These zones sometimes run into each other, but it helps keep the overall studio in order, and satisfies my need to see progress, as projects move from one zone, or step in the process to another.

HKPS::What kinds of materials/tools do you find challenging to keep organized or locate when you need to use them?

HH::It is always the miscellaneous items that disappear when you most need them. I mainly use plastic storage containers, and I have one medium size bin for miscellaneous tools and large bin for miscellaneous larger items, like glue, tape, and twine.

HKPS:: How many projects are you usually working on at once? Is this due to space constraints, creative process, organizing systems or other influences?

HH::I would say that I always have at least 2 projects going on at any time. I like to be able to switch back and forth between varying tasks, which make more efficient use of my time. For instance, I’m currently laminating paper and canvas to Masonite, working on a marker drawing on vinyl, tweaking a pen drawing on Mylar, with a pile of small oil paintings that also need my attention. While one thing is drying you can tend to another, or if you get tired or bored with one project, you can easily pick up something else to work on. Being organized and having the projects I’m working on visible or easily accessible is really important when juggling several things.

HKPS::How often do you purge, clean or de-clutter your supply stash and space due to space or other constraints?

HH::At home our general rule is if you buy something, like a new pair of shoes, then an old pair needs to go in the donation pile. At the studio it’s different since sometimes you need to collect a pile of furniture or materials for an upcoming project. So, sometimes the studio can seem cluttered. I do a massive re-organization and cleaning probably once a year, for a major studio tour event, and smaller cleanings randomly for curator visits and open studios. I don’t clean and put away my tools daily, but do always do so before I begin a new major project.

HKPS::Please describe how creative cycles of organization or dis-organization affect your creative process? Are there certain phases of projects that are more or less organized?

HH::I think that I need the white walls of the studio to be able to work. Clutter, the kind I grew up surrounded by as a child would definitely keep me from being productive. It’s funny when you look at my work, since it looks like the work of a hoarder. My studio is the opposite, a sanctuary of sorts for creating art.

HKPS:: How much thought do you give to your artistic body of work in terms of historic value and the overall legacy you will leave behind? How do you store/archive your work or records?

HH::I never cared much about archival quality and longevity in my own work until recently. I was interested in all things fragile, ephemeral and fleeting, and so chose materials and practices that were sometimes impermanent. These days I do care, and hope my work will stand the test of time. I do also document everything through digital photography. I keep all of my original files, edit and save large versions, and small versions for web. I keep an inventory list that I update regularly. I reference my list all of the time, for title, size, date, and value information. I also note where the work is now, who owns it, what exhibits or publications it has been featured in, and so on. You can buy a program for this, but I just made my own system using a table in Microsoft Word. I also keep my website up to date, and use social media more and more these days. I have several ongoing series/bodies of work, and I tend to title things as part of that series. I sign and date each piece on the back… I can’t stand signatures on the fronts of paintings. I do believe that we need to archive our work as best we can, through preserving the physical pieces, but also through digital archives.

My greatest wish is that through seeing how other artist work we can learn from one another. There is no ONE correct system or way of organizing. There are as many creative systems as their creative makers! My aim is to highlight these unique makers in each interview. I was thrilled to be invited to see inside the studio of Hollis and thanks to her for providing all the excellent photo’s that illustrate how her studios space is arranged and organized, as well as how organizing affects her creative process. Please check out her work over at her website and visit Redux Studio if you are in Charleston to see Worthless Matter while it’s still open-until June 28th. As for this series, please check back here or better yet, sign up for my emails on the top left of any page so you don’t’ miss any of the amazing artists in the near future ‘Inside the Studio’!

* Inside the Artist Studio was my brainchild in 2011. There are a lot of popular studio features on the web and in magazines but I’m specifically interested in showing how organizational process influences the artists studio work. These photo’s are not styled and are typical of how the artists working studio looks. I request that each artist leave their space as it would be on a daily basis (just like I ask my clients). This series is meant to highlight how artist REALLY work rather than showing STYLED shots (popular in home and organizing magazines and blogs). I’m sure just like me, you are fascinated by the “behind the scenes” sneak peek into these artists working lives!

In the Studio with Katie Glusica

April 3, 2014 by Heather Filed Under: Art, Art & Design, In the Studio, Inspiration & Education, Organize, Systems & Techniques

Today we take a sneak peek In the Studio with Katie Glusica a textile artist and fellow SCAD Alumni. Katie and I have met at several SCAD Fibers Open Studio events and I’m fascinated by both her weaving and personal artwork and the work she does in rug restoration. Katie lives in Savannah GA and her studio is in her home. Thank you Katie for inviting us into your creative space!

HKPS::What age did you suspect or know you were an artist?

KG::It was my junior/senior year of high school when I decided to study art. Up until then, I was more interested in collecting rocks and science, which has become a big part of what conceptually feeds my practice. Once I was in college and began taking challenging art classes, I knew I was an artist. During my first textiles class I knew I was a weaver, but I always have been.

HKPS:: What mediums do you work with?

KG::I work in a wide range of mediums and techniques, but I am weaver regardless of the material or technique I am working in. In my current work I typically combine traditional and experimental materials like silk and nylon monofilament using my eight harness Gilmore loom. In my rug restoration work I use all natural materials, needles and frame looms. Recently, I am collaborating on a project involving glass and have been working in wood to create framed environments for some of my weavings. I try to keep up drawing, sketching and writing practices. I also love to cast things in latex and draw with oil.

HKPS:: Where do you make your art, how big is your studio and how long have you been in this space?

KG::Currently, my weaving, etc. studio is in my home. The room is about fifteen by fifteen feet. And, usually expands into other parts of the home as needed. I have not yet done any casting in this studio. I have been working in this space, with this particular set up for about two or so years. My rug restoration studio is part of the antique furniture and rug store Savannah Galleries in downtown Savannah. There, I typically work at a six-foot (preferably eight-foot) table or on the floor, so the space I am using moves locations within the shop from time to time. I have been working there for six years.

HKPS:: When you began working in this space did you plan any systems for the overall set up or did you let things evolve organically? How did past studio spaces or systems influence this space?

KG::From the very beginning, my studio spaces have all had the same basic set up, which is installed based on the space specifics, and evolves naturally from there. This same basic set up consists of an eight harness loom and necessary accessories, at least one shelving unit, plastic storage bins, a six to eight foot long table, a desk and clamp lights. Currently, I also have a chest of drawers, three shelving units and a chest. Oh, and there is always a stereo of some sort.

HKPS:: Do you consider yourself to be an organized person?

KG::Yes.

HKPS:: Have you ever worked with another artist or gallery? If so did you learn any systems for organizing?

KG::Yes, and I have taken note of the many different ways different people do things, kept what has worked for me and left the rest. One of the most important experiences I had as an art, specifically textiles, student was visiting my weaving professor’s studio. My basic set up is essentially modeled after hers (Susan Iverson). An important specific lesson from that first visit to a professional textile studio was to always use clear plastics bins to discourage moths, but keep your fabric away from light and dust wrapped in muslin!

HKPS:: How or where else have you learn your organizing habits and systems ?

KG::I would say that my organizing habits started very early on, as a child, both my mother and father are very organized in their spaces and lets just say I used to have systems for eating cereal. This tendency towards order is likely what makes me an apt weaver. I do however stop organizing before it gets over-the-top because the studio is a place where I like to allow for a degree of chaos.

HKPS::What types of schedules, systems, tools or processes do you use to help maintain organization in your studio? Would you like to share any tips?

KG::I am a huge list maker. Lists, lists and more lists. Shelves, shelves and more shelves. Boxes. I use a lot of folders. I like Post-It notes, too. If you don’t have close to the same amount of things as you do places to put them, you can’t be well organized. The level of organization one needs is up to the individual. I keep only as many things on my plate as I can do well. Yet always keep enough going to make sure I have something to do. I try to keep cycles of work and applications going, trying for about three at a time…playing the odds. It is important to keep your computer files, images and C/V or resume names and places organized and backed up. There is always something on my loom and I consistently work through my different projects prioritizing them as needed, usually with Post-It notes.

HKPS::What kinds of materials/tools do you find challenging to keep organized or locate when you need to use them?

KG::Paperwork, ideas and images are the trickiest to keep in order, mostly because they are hard to assign a place as they are abstract in nature. So long as I have folders and Post-Its or paper scraps around and place to lay them out on as I work on them, organization is easy. If I run out of folders and space when I start some new projects I could be in trouble. I also try to name my image files and create folders and places for folders on the computer…and have a system of prioritizing visually on the computer based on where and when I place folders.

HKPS::How many projects are you usually working on at once? Is this due to space constraints, creative process, organizing systems or other influences?

KG::I am a person who is best stimulated by having many projects going at once…at the moment I have around six to eight projects in the air. This is possible in my space as at the moment it is fairly dynamic. It is limited in ways, but with a house and studio room I am able to make shift anything I’ve needed.

HKPS::How often do you purge, clean or de-clutter your supply stash and space due to space or other constraints?

KG::I try to clean as I work, say at the end of a session. I’m a rather tidy worker so it’s not much of an issue. Organization also helps keep the need to purge or clean to a minimum.

HKPS::Please describe how creative cycles of organization or dis-organization affect your creative process? Are there certain phases of projects that are more or less organized?

KG::I definitely require an organized space to be productive so I try to be consistent with my organization and cleaning.

HKPS::How much thought do you give to your artistic body of work in terms of historic value and the overall legacy you will leave behind? How do you store/archive your work or records?

KG::I store my work in a manner to promote its long-term preservation. All of my textiles are stored in clean muslin, always rolled or flat, then put in clean and clear plastic bins. Almost everything I make is sight specific or changes throughout its existence but if properly cared for could last indefinitely. I have also worked in ways and mediums that yielded work of a more temporal nature. For example, I’ve made castings out of latex that naturally breaks down over time, so at the time of making I document the work thoroughly knowing that it will not last forever. A very important part of any studio practice is consistent photographs of work and process.

My greatest wish is that through seeing how other artist work we can learn from one another. There is no correct system or way of organizing, just what works for YOU. There are as many creative systems as their creative makers! My aim is to highlight these unique makers in each interview. A HUGE thank you to Katie for inviting us into her studio and sharing her personalized systems and how organizing affects her creative process. Please check out her work over at her website and if you live Savannah or are visiting be sure to visit her at the She’s a very talented lady and I’m so glad to have her in our local community!

In the Studio with The Simpson’s Double Feature

January 2, 2014 by Heather Filed Under: In the Studio, Inspiration & Education, Organize, Systems & Techniques, Tips & Resources

Welcome to 2014!! Today’s a special Double Feature day Inside the Home & Studio of my dear friends Sarah and Brad. I met Sarah and later Brad, while attending college at SCAD. Sarah and I were both fibers majors, both focusing on weaving and we have been fiber friends ever since. She is a very talented weaver and woven textile designer for her industry job at Pure Country Weavers. Brad, Sarah’s husband is a talented painter and more recently has embarked on a career working with illustration for the comic book industry. His most recent work is as a colorist for Marvel and you can see some of the work he’s done here. This creative husband and wife team bravely sold almost everything they owned and moved out to San Francisco about 5 years ago. These days they both work from their home and have learned to live a more simple life, in less space and value what is truly important to them.

HKPS:: At what age did you realize you were an artist?

Sarah – I never had an “aha!” moment where I declared myself an artist. As far back as I can remember, I was just always innately drawn to arts and crafts. Growing up in the mountains of East Tennessee, a lot of my parents’ friends were artisans of varying crafts and media, so I think that greatly influenced me.

Brad – I realized by the time I was 4 years old. I would draw all day and often go through those 200 sheet school notepads in one day.

HKPS:: What medium(s) do you work with?

Sarah – My main medium is textiles, more specifically weaving, but I love to dabble in drawing, painting and collage too. I work as a designer in the textile industry, so I spend a lot of time on the computer working mainly in Photoshop.

Brad – Currently, I work in the comic book industry as a colorist, so most of my work is digital. I use Photoshop and Corel Painter. I’ve done a lot of work in oil painting, but my favorite medium is watercolors.

HKPS::Where do you make your art & how big is your space?

Sarah – I work all around my home. There is no official studio space, instead my home and studio are integrated. This is necessary living in the bay area where living space is greatly limited. Our furniture has to double duty as art supply storage and work surface.

Brad – Living in small apartments over the past 6 years has taught me you really don’t need as much space as you think.

HKPS:: Do you consider yourself to be an organized person?

Sarah – I’m fairly organized, but I’m not overly concerned with it. Over the years, I’ve become more relaxed with organization. Most of my stuff has a drawer or a box or a shelf where it belongs, but that’s about as far as my organization goes.

Brad  – I’m an organized person out of necessity. I have various deadlines on a weekly basis, and I have to keep track of these obligations since I work for myself. With my personal art like painting and drawing, I’ve always taken an organized approach with my time management and layout of materials.

HKPS::How/Where did you learn your organizing habits and systems?

Sarah – My family was incredibly unorganized growing up, and I think that initially drove me to become extremely organized when I left for college. I guess I’m self-taught. However, I found myself being stressed out by keeping everything so orderly, and over time, I’ve learned to lighten up a bit and find a more balanced approach to organizational habits. I don’t sweat the small stuff anymore.

Brad – Early on in my life, I struggled with learning disabilities and I was extremely unorganized. When I went to high school, I had some great tutors that taught me some organizational techniques that I still use daily.

HKPS:: What types of cycles have you notices in your working process? Are there certain phases of projects that are neater or more disorganized?

Sarah – I actually work very organically. The more organic I work, the better my art turns out. I like to be spontaneous with minimal structure and planning. It’s where my magic happens.

Brad – When I have multiple deadlines with a hectic schedule, my working process becomes disheveled. So after a deadline or heavy work cycle, I take time to reboot and reorganize my space so I can start fresh.

HKPS:: What types of schedules, systems, tools or tips do you use to help maintain organization in your studio?

Sarah – I now use my iPhone for all task organization – list making, calendars, reminders etc.

Brad – I use gmail and all it’s features for most of my planning organization, however, I still like to make a list on paper with daily objectives.

HKPS:: What materials/tools do you find challenging to keep organized or locate when you need to use them?

Sarah – Having such a small living and studio space, I can’t hoard materials/tools. It actually influences me to be more purposeful with what I’m creating and less wasteful. And the added bonus is that I can locate my materials easily.

Brad – Physically, I don’t have any challenges with keeping my materials and tools organized. However, in my line of work, I have a tremendous amount of digital files that have to be catalogued. I find this to be extremely difficult.

HKPS:: How often do you purge or declutter your supply stash due to space or other constraints?

Sarah – Living and working in a small space requires constant purging of supplies. I evaluate my supply needs every couple of months or so. There are so many great re-use/scrap centers in the bay area, which is where I donate my purged materials. I also shop for new supplies at these reuse centers. Nothing goes to waste!

Brad – Every couple of months.

HKPS:: Please describe how creative cycles of organization or disorganization affect your creative process.

Sarah – As I stated previously, I work best in an organic state, so things can get messy. But I have to be respectful of my shared space with my husband, so I can never let it get too out of hand. This is where a separate studio space would be beneficial to me some day. But working with space restraints is a necessity and has been beneficial too. Living in my studio space keeps me constantly engaged with my art, a continuous creative hum to my daily living.

Brad – I begin my creative process in an organized state, but gradually as a project unfolds, my space becomes more cluttered. However, this doesn’t affect my productivity. After I’ve completed a project, I regroup and organize.

Thank you so much, Sarah and Brad for inviting us into your home and providing us with the photo’s and your responses. Each have shared some great insight and it’s fascinating how they both approach organizing and how plays into their creative process a bit differently. Living and working from home can be challenging and I’m certain these two have both had to evaluate and re-evaluate what it takes to stay successful. They have certainly created a beautiful and functional living and working environment. They will soon have the addition of a wee little one, congratulations!

My greatest wish is that through seeing how other artist work we can learn from one another. There is no ONE correct system or way of organizing. There are as many creative systems as their creative makers! My aim is to highlight these unique makers in each interview. A HUGE thank you to each one of this year’s artists for inviting us into their studio and sharing their systems and how organizing affects their creative process. There will be more to come next year and I’m working on ways to share this feature via other avenues. I am also planning to expand the series to include other sneak peek interviews into creative small business sometime around mid-2014. If you missed any of my previous Inside the Studio posts this year please go back and take a look!

* Inside the Studio was my brainchild in 2011. There are a lot of popular studio features on the web and in magazines but I’m specifically interested in showing how organizational process influences the artists studio work. These photo’s are not styled and are typical of how the artists working studio looks. I request that each artist leave their space as it would be on a daily basis (just like I ask my clients). This series is meant to highlight how artist REALLY work rather than showing STYLED shots (popular in home and organizing magazines and blogs). I’m sure just like me, you are fascinated by the “behind the scenes” sneak peek into these artists working lives!

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In the Studio with Allegory Lanham

December 26, 2013 by Heather Filed Under: Art & Design, Home, In the Studio, Inspiration & Education, Organize, Systems & Techniques, Tips & Resources

Today’s studio sneak peek is the last of 2013!! I am so excited to have begun this interview process and have loved meeting and learning about each of these artists, from local and afar. Some have been new to me, others are friends and artists I’ve known for quite some time. Each of them has shared something unique about how they work in their studio practice! I launched this series in March not knowing how I would find new artists but each interview has evolved naturally and I’ve featured 18 artists over the last 9 months! These artist have included textile designers, a garment designer, painters, a graphic designer, photographers, a music studio producer, a potter, a mixed media artist, and quilters!

Today’s interview is inside the Studio of Allegory Lanham of A Thousand Needles. We met while in Houston at Quilt market, where we both attended the Bad Ass Quilters Society Gala. Allegory has a distinct sense of fashion, topped with a funky hairstyle that matched the blue tunic shirt she designed and wore that evening. This is probably one reason I sat near her and and we struck up a conversation about life, quilting and how we both came to there that evening. I learned that she was born and raised in Kentucky where she learned first-hand quilting traditions passed down through her mother and grandmother. She didn’t come around to quilting as a form of her own artistic expression till years later…post college after trying her hand at all kinds of other forms of creative expression. She kept a needle close by throughout though and fashioned garments and garment patterns along the way. As she states on her blog, she turned to quilting when she desperately wanted to sew something flat! These days she teaches, designs and created both garments and quilts.

HKPS::What age did you suspect or know you were an artist?

AL::I know I was young when I realized I *wanted* to be an artist. Maybe 5? Or 6? At that age, the revelation just meant that I colored a lot and then read lots and lots of books (my other passion). I never started *feeling* like an artist until the past year or so.

A part of Al’s design and inspiration wall

HKPS::What mediums do you work with?

AL::My primary love is fabric but I’ve tried just about every medium you can imagine over the years. That idea of wanting to be an artist meant that I tried drawing, sculpting, painting, metal work for jewelry…all of it. My art supplies are numerous. On a typical day though I’m using fabric and embroidery floss along with my sketchbook and colored pencils (I do all my design work on paper).

HKPS::Where do you make Art and how big is your studio?

AL::My ‘dayjob” (I hate calling it that because I love it so much and really do it at all hours not just during the day) is done in my studio which is a side-room of the house. I’m lucky that there’s a bit of a hallway that leads to it and I can be slightly isolated. It’s not very large…maybe 10ft x 15ft? If that. I should measure some day. I’d say 90% of the fabric work is done here. Sometimes I’ll take a project out in the main house to sew by hand but not very often. Any time I want to play with some other medium, I’ll do it in the main rooms of the house. All the paint and such stays far far away from the fabric.

HKPS::Do you consider yourself to be an organized person?

AL::Yes? Depending on the day. Oh, more accurately, depending on the deadlines. Things have their place, certainly but if I’m in the middle of 3-4 large projects then the studio is a disaster zone. I think it’s important to note that only those large projects are thrown everywhere though. I like working in a small bit of chaos. If something isn’t going well, I can push it to the side and grab something else. But fabric has three main places it lives (depending on the size pieces), patterns have their own drawers sorted by types and interfacing has its own shelves. Those things never change no matter the chaos.

Visible storage of larger fabric pieces

HKPS:: How or where did you learn your organizing habits and systems?

AL::I feel like I just invented it by myself along the way. As I devoted more time to my work, it became necessary to find things. A *super* organized, labelled system didn’t work for me though. I need to see things sometimes when I think about them. Or move other pieces around while I puzzle out a design. Materials are always organized to save me time hunting but projects also live in bags and boxes. That’s not to say that at some point I’ll dump that whole project box out on a side table and look at it while I work. To see if the colors are working for me still.

Cubbies for small fabric storage

HKPS::What types of schedules, systems, tools or tips do you use to help maintain organization in your studio?

AL::I have a planner that I use for my teaching schedule and I’ll put major deadlines in there. That always helps to remind me. On the first of each month, I’ll sit down and write a list. Items that absolutely have to be done get dates next to them (and usually appear at the top of the list). Things I’d like to work on get cluttered on there as well. It’s always an ambitious list..let’s see…this month’s has 25 items on it and some of those have 3-4 components. I know not all of it will get done and things will get added to it as opportunities come up. But this system works for me because I feel like I can spend less time during the month figuring out what I *should* be doing and just sew. This year I finally invested in a wire drawer system from IKEA for my scraps and it’s helped a lot. They’re sorted by warms, cools, neutrals and holiday. I work in scraps a lot for my projects and I used to just have this giant tub that I would dig and dig through. Now scraps have a home and I can just yank a drawer out to work from.

HKPS::What kinds of materials/tools do you find challenging to keep organized or locate when you need to use them?

AL::Purse hardware and I are having a bit of a battle right now. I need to figure it out soon considering some upcoming plans that I have but right now I swear that I’ll have a magnetic snap then it disappears when I need it. Then reappears once I’ve gone out to buy a new one…in that same cup I swear I already looked in. I work in a lot of sizes that are very close to each other, too. For example, I have 1” and 1 1/2” metal sliders all mixed in a basket right now. There might be some 1 1/4” in there too…it’s a slight mess. I know there’s a cup of sliders but I’ll have to pull out and measure for making a bag. My dream is to have one of those tool cabinets full of purse hardware with each section labeled. That would make me incredibly happy but I can’t possibly fit another piece of furniture in my studio right now.

HKPS::How often do you purge or declutter your supply stash due to space or other constraints?

AL::It’s gotta hit me. Especially working in fabric and fabric scraps, I feel like I need access to a lot. I’m the type that’s more likely to mix lines and designers and such all together. So while I do buy bundles of fabric, I almost immediately break them down and split them into different projects. Which would make it difficult to buy for a new project if I cleared out my studio. Maybe twice a year or so, after I’ve worked on a couple of projects at once and my floor is full of fabric…I’ll just clear out all the pieces I just cut from. Instagram makes it easy to destash. Either full pieces of fabric or just snap a pic of the scraps left over from one and sell them as a set. That way they immediately go in an envelope and get shipped off, instead of staying and adding to my enormous stockpile of scraps in the studio. (Follow her on Instagram to find great de-stash deals!)

HKPS::Please describe how creative cycles of organization or disorganization affect your creative process? Are there certain phases of projects that are more or less organized?

AL::Like I mentioned before, I can’t ever just work on one thing. I think a lot about my quilts/bags before I ever sew them. Sometimes a stack of fabric can sit on my side table for a month. I’ll switch out a color or two in it and let it sit for another couple days. But this means when I go to cut and sew, it’s a whirlwind. So I think about two or three projects, leave fabric out for those while cutting another two that have already sat. It *seems* dis-organized whenever anyone glances into my studio. There are these little piles of fabric around, some of which live in baskets but most are just put on any available flat surface. If fabric is sitting in a pile, it can’t be pulled for anything else…that messes me up.
I try once every other month to re-organize the small things that end up getting scattered from work: that stray bit of embroidery floss or those buttons I decided not to use. I have a terrible habit of turning anything into a pincushion. So I’ll pull pins out of things and put them in an actual pincushion during this clean-up.

HKPS::Do you give much thought to your artistic body of work in terms of historic value and the overall artistic legacy you will leave behind? How do you store/archive your work or records? If not why?

AL::This is actually a strange question for me. I love quilting history. I have books on it and I’ll base my own work on some very traditional work that I’ll spend days doing research on. Yet I’ve never actually considered my own quilts a part of quilting history. My quilts will get labels, if I remember to sew them in but I don’t think of a legacy. Now that I’m sitting and thinking about it, I think that’s just tied into the fact that I see my ‘art’ getting used every day. My couch is covered with quilts and so is the bed. I can spy four handmade pillows from where I’m sitting. If I’m carrying a bag, it’s one that I made. I have plans for more work that can be displayed and is meant for hanging instead of carrying but I’m reminded daily that my art isn’t at all “hands-off.” There’s a quilt on my bed that has been patched so many times…and I love it dearly. My husband is hard on blankets. I don’t know how he does it. And that was always the reality of what I do, it was going to be beat-up and dropped and dragged and loved and torn. It’s so weird..because I wonder if those quilts of mine will even survive and yet in my studio right now I have three 1930s feedsack quilts that were found unfinished and I’m taking every care to finish them, knowing that I won’t get it exactly how the person who cut those pieces intended but I hate to see them undone. It makes me want to at least put a note in each of my project boxes that named what quilt I intend for them to become.

Thank you so much Allegory for inviting us into your studio space and providing us with the photo’s. Thank you for sharing some of the organizing methods and systems you use in your studio practice. If you would like to see more of her work head over to A Thousand Needles website or her Etsy Shop to see what’s available for sale. I’ll be back with another artist DOUBLE feature next week to ring in the New Year!

My greatest wish is that through seeing how other artist work we can learn from one another. There is no ONE correct system or way of organizing. There are as many creative systems as their creative makers! My aim is to highlight these unique makers in each interview. A HUGE thank you to each one of this year’s artists for inviting us into their studio and sharing their systems and how organizing affects their creative process. There will be more to come next year and I’m working on ways to share this feature via other avenues. I am also planning to expand the series to include other sneak peek interviews into creative small business sometime around mid-2014. If you missed any of my previous Inside the Studio posts this year please go back and take a look!

* Inside the Studio was my brainchild in 2011. There are a lot of popular studio features on the web and in magazines but I’m specifically interested in showing how organizational process influences the artist’s studio work. These photo’s are not styled and are typical of how the artists working studio looks. I request that each artist leave their space as it would be on a daily basis (just like I ask my clients). This series is meant to highlight how artist REALLY work rather than showing STYLED shots (popular in home and organizing magazines and blogs). I’m sure just like me, you are fascinated by the “behind the scenes” sneak peek into these artists working lives!

Save

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In the Studio with Allegory Lanham

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