Two weeks ago my studio was looking like this... positively overflowing with work, books, materials and such.
ON March 21st I held a One-day-only Moving-Out-Sale that was such a joyful event. I actually found it very enervating to order the studio before finally dismantling everything. Various people came by, cups of tea was shared, someone brought lunch, some Art-pieces found wonderful new homes and this farewell gesture successfully wound up my experience of being in this excellent studio.
A few days before the Art Sale!
The day of the sale there was a very organised look about the place... all ready to pack.. or find a new owner. The great thing about moving is getting to decide what to keep, what to let go of.
It was a major thing moving from this Paddington Studio... I'd really settled in, which can seem disconcerting when it comes to getting everything out later. But it is the only way to work... throwing oneself into it in the first place!
Going through my collection of seeds and seed-pods last weekend I realised so many of them had disintegrated... some into dust, others not quite so dramatically. Here on the verandah above I put aside the baskets of pods that needed checking.
Much as I value this collection I had to be rash and put aside just the best things to keep. And that is what is great about moving. One casts a discerning eye over all and does something crucial in an art studio... says good bye to things that really do need to go. I could have been tougher... but... enough for now!
The studio on the last morning... floors washed
... only a few pieces of furniture left.
emptiness.. just how it was when I arrived last year!
wet floor!
the back verandah... the garden so lush after a summer of rain!!
One thing I packed off to a good friend this week was a heavy box of Oil Paints... collected slowly over 15 years but really only used during the years 2000 to 2002 when studying painting for a time under new teachers had led to a return to Oils that I'd so loved as a young student.
When moving to a new home with an internal studio in 2002 I'd discovered after a time there painting in Oils inside the house was not a good idea for me... and I'd given over to acrylics instead. It feels good to make those kind of clear decisions. The whole process of packing, first slowly separating everything into categories then musing over each thing as I handled it,, decided where it should go... all this was a strong reminder of where I have been and whats been the focus over time.
Finding room at home for studio things has been interesting...
Interesting to be back in this space... despite being small a lot of work has happened here these past 5 years. And on the desk-top computer... 5 years ago I was a complete novice... 4 years ago I started blogging and now ... quite familiar with the online world!
Decisions... lots to make in the next while!
It seemed poignant to take these before and after photos... eras coming to an end. Its good to have the memories. Before to long the next chapter will emerge and the paint will be unpacked again!
