Last semester I was reading a book, titled Inside the Painter's Studio by Joe Fig (located here), and was absolutely amazed at how each artist interviewed within the text (Will Cotton, Eric Fischl, etc...) had their studio practice almost down to a science- The habitual cycles of breakfast, email reading, and even lunch had a very specific time frame in which the event took place. This struck me as interesting, because though I'd like to say there's a method to my painting madness... Well, there definitely isn't.
Getting back to the book itself, Fig asks each artist the same bundle of questions, all relating to their studio practice, the actual space they work in, music, and the use of assistants, among other things. Reading this text inspired me to look at these interviews and ask myself some of the same questions in hopes that it will aid in understanding my own practice, as well as getting my schedule down to that of a well-oiled machine.
To begin, I would like to discuss how I got here in the first place- for those unsure of how the degree cycle works for artists, after high school we go on and get BFA's (Bachelor of Fine Arts- sometimes we just go for the BA, Bachelor of Arts, instead- or MAYBE we go on to be K-12 educators- you go, you teacher people, you. I give you all the claps!). For me, I graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania with my BFA (Cum Laude- WOO) in 2012. As you might have noticed from my previous post, my BFA is in painting. After graduating, I waited not-so-patiently for the results from several graduate schools, hoping to anyone in the Universe who would listen that one of them would accept me (I applied to 3). VERY lucky for me, I was accepted into all 3 of these schools, so I went with my first choice-Edinboro University of Pennsylvania.
I'll admit, my first semester was a bit of a culture shock- I wasn't used to ANYTHING about grad school at all, and sucked pretty hard (we'll let the non-professional lingo fall to the wayside for a moment, because trust me, I did). After some reflection time during my winter break, I came back to the studio, making a promise to myself that I would turn my work ethic around and kick some major art-school booty this time around- I had to; being a successful artist doesn't just fall in your lap without any work to get you there.
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| A particularly sleepy night in the studio, with "Heather, Seated at Table" in progress behind me. |
In case you're wondering, I did kick that major booty, and got me a sweet and beautiful 4.0- the first in my entire post-high school career.
To finish the talk about artists and their schooling, once I have my MFA (Master of Fine Arts), I'll be qualified to teach at the college level, and considered a professional artist- though honestly, if you're working, showing work and selling it, I'd consider you a professional- you don't need the $50k piece of parchment paper to prove to me that you make stuff, and make it well. Really, this is just how I chose to go about things!
BACK TO THE BOOK AND THINGS- I PROMISE. Back to discussing a typical day for me-
During the semester (or when I'm at my apartment in Edinboro), I get up around 8 or 9, depending on how late I was there the night before- once I've found coffee/food/strange combination of the two/nothing, I'll throw on some clothes I don't mind ruining and head out the door. If I walk, it takes me about 10 minutes to make it to my studio- about 3 if I bike, which I plan to do a lot more of in the coming semester! Once I'm there, I clean up any mess that I've left for myself, ready my palette, make coffee, and get to work. Typically, I'll put a layer down on a piece I was working on when I left last, and then I'll move on to a few studies to work out plans for future pieces. I take notes, look at artists online for reference, and do research on conceptual ideas to make my work more dynamic and meaningful. This is really only interrupted by class and discussions/critiques from my fellow grad students and professors. Sometimes, I'll leave for food and come back. Other times, I'll get caught up making weird noises with the other painters, or dancing to Kesha and a variety of punk rock.
What. I'm 25 and have to move my legs every hour or so- judge me.
Summer is an entirely different animal. When I'm home, my studio is my bedroom in my father's house- I have a nice little archipelago of art supplies piled up against the wall- pile o'canvas here, pile o'paint in a box, etc, etc... I'm really not incredibly organized, and it's a small space with two cats, so you can imagine how fabulous it looks.
As far as the work cycle goes- I normally drag myself out of bed and go to work- I'm a custom frame specialist at a Michaels' Arts and Crafts store about 45 minutes from my house- as much as I love my job, it eats a lot of my time. I do still find time to work on painting, don't worry! It's not 8 hours a day, like previously (please... I was in the studio from 10 am until midnight on and off- I didn't paint the whole time, but you better believe the entire experience was devoted to my practice in one way or another! Strange noises count.), but I do make sure to have a few pieces to consistently work on, aside from the studies I always have going on. Gotta say it, though- I REALLY miss my studio, with the creaky wooden floors and constant smell of liquid death (turpentine- it's delicious once it's in your pores).
Taking a look at studio habits at home and at school definitely puts it into perspective just HOW important it is to have a separate space to work in. At school, the process goes Motivation/Execution, Critique/Execute/Complete, Repeat. As you might have noticed, the title of this blog post is a little different- it's WAY easier to self-loath when you feel cramped and unable to get paint everywhere, because let's face it- I'm not going to get paint on the carpet, with a dad and cats around. (I mean, it's his carpet, not mine) I do feel a little restricted in creativity at the moment, but it's picking up like no other right now, and I couldn't be more excited about that. Prepare yourselves for more tea-bag inspired portraits- SURROGATE FIGURES ARE COMING YOUR WAY!
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| A cute little thumbtack study from last semester- I love this little guy! (This is about life-size, though it is cropped.) |
Until then, paint on!
XOXO, C.
