The Studio/Gallery

Some mornings after the coffee brews, I take a cup and go directly to the studio. My red bamboo director's chair becomes a perch from which I direct the day's activities. Early morning light streams in thru the eastern corner of the building but northern light takes up much of the day until late afternoon.

Here's the new easel which will also lie flat for watercolors or while working on those crazy ink underpaintings of mine. The painting is a new one. An island scene of early morning beneath the live oaks and palmettos.

The view toward the east/southeast side of the gallery. I saved the stereo cabinets and placed them side by side. Perfect for the music! and, as you can see, the door knobs made a great hanging space!

Below is the northwest front corner of the gallery. The other side has a huge window just like this one. The upper windows are painted over on the outside. That's a job for when I feel really confident on a tall ladder and the temperature isn't over 80 degrees!

From the gallery, there's a short hallway leading to the classroom (room to the left of the pic) The door in the back center of the hall leads to more rooms. One will be a storage for paintings/supplies. One, an office, and the others don't know what they want to become yet!

...and if you ever need a large table, here's how I made this one. Use an old sturdy wood table, mount a 3 or 4 foot wide door onto the top using L brackets to hold it to the top of the old table. This door was solid wood and very heavy! Thanks to my friends who helped with the lifting! and it's perfect for the center of the classroom! Everyone works around it, I can do framing on it, and it's perfect for underpainting those large panels!

Another great find in my building was this cabinet which I believe was used for knives at one time. The other side has pegboard for display, but as you can see, my paints fit nicely in the slotted drawers and the top is a great place for small boards. I also keep small matboard pieces here for students to use when doing exercises or warmups!

I'll be adding a ceiling fan to the classroom in a few days! Maybe a surprise for my students next week...don't tell anyone!

Until next time...keep painting!

Keeping Pace

Notice my new background? Well the ladder has been moved to the last part of the building that needs painting...the back hallway and hopefully, future studios for other artist friends! Those rooms still have boxes yet to be opened - but I've decided that unless they say "art" or "art books" on the outside that they, most likely, will go unopened for a few more months! If I haven't needed it by now, I may never need it!

Here's another remake of one of the smaller bedrooms. I call it the "Poppy" room. Not because it's filled with poppies, but because of the poppy red color used for accent against the stark white of the walls...and because I like the sound of the word. Makes me think of bright cheerful morning flowers and this is a bright cheerful morning room where the sun shines in from the east.

Before....except for the awful smelly carpet that was on the floor. I think my back will never be the same after pulling up carpet that was glued to tile that was stuck to the concrete floor! But the check pattern left by the tile in black really worked out well with the new decor! I think!

and the after....

Hope my "Poppy" room brings a smile to your face today!

carly

p.s. The plumber stopped in today and now the kitchen has hot and "cold" running water!! but it needs a new drain to the sewer! LOL

Art In The Park

The Blessing of the Fleet weekend is one of the most exciting that takes place in our small town of Darien. The waterfront is lined with shrimp boats decorated for the Blessing ceremony and live music fills the air on Friday and Saturday evenings. The Tams played this year with their early 70's music. Lots of dancing by the more "mature" crowd. Strange how that music era appeals to everyone!

The Old Jail Art Center sponsors an "Art In The Park" event which coincides with the Blessing of the Fleet in Vernon Square. So that all of you will know that I have been painting since arriving in Darien....and not just on walls....here's a pic of the photo wall where everyone could decide if they wanted to be the Sheriff or the Convict! Which would you choose??

I also plein air painted on both days, along with several other artists. Here's a couple of my small paintings.

My studio was open part time during the weekend and I was amazed at the response to the "open door". Folks just dropped in, complemented my art, talked about classes and really encouraged me. So ok...here's one pic of the studio so you can get a glimpse of my space! The half wall separates the classroom from the main gallery.

....keep the brushes in the paint....til next time!