The Great Studio Pare Down and Tidy Up
The tidied top drawer in my studio.
The words that resonate
Simplicity and simplifying. These two words have been swirling around in my thoughts for the better part of a year now. Minimal lifestyle accounts fill my IG feed. Shows about decluttering and downsizing hold an ongoing fascination for me…binge watching Marie Kondo anyone?
All of this vicarious simplifying of possessions has me thinking about all of the things that I have stored. What is the purpose of having so many things that I no longer have any affinity for, or want or need?
Making room
At the same time, I’ve been in a reflective mood of late, thinking about the kind of work that I aspire to make.
In my mind's eye the work is composed of a more pared down palette of collaged and painted elements. From a distance, it's cool and calm but with a gentle sense of movement in a simplified abstract composition. Close up is where one can appreciate the details of a layering of materials and the surface texture.
Simplicity and harmony are the words that best describe the feeling that I’m after.
It occurred to me recently, although not surprisingly, that these two interests in my life, simplifying my possessions and simplicity in my work, mirror one another.
Living with less and making work that is pared down are part of the same desire to simplify. And if I want to make work that is more simplified and harmonious I need that feeling in my surroundings, in particular in my studio space.
Someone asked me recently, “If you have the room, why not hang onto more things?”. The simple answer is that I don’t want to be burdened by the things that no longer resonate with me.
I need space and clarity, not things that don’t serve me and my art practice.
So the time has come for me to stop watching others declutter their space and begin to declutter and organise my own space, beginning with my studio, in order to make room for the work that I want to make next.
The “Why” of it all
As I undertake a more intensive and intentional clear out and clean up of my studio space than I have done in the past, I’ve been asking myself two important questions as I go through my belongings.
The first question is the easy one to answer:
“Do I want to be the kind of person who has a lot of things?”
The answer is a resounding No.
The second question is more difficult to answer.
When I’m contemplating whether an item deserves a place in my studio, or in fact my life, I ask myself the question:
“Does this item serve me and the person that I aspire to be?”
In the past, I’ve made mistakes and let go of things that I later regretted. I used to have a very elegant black dress of my Mother’s that I gave away to charity because it didn’t fit me then. I wish now that I hadn’t.
It’s inevitable that in the process of streamlining my life and working space something will be discarded that future me will wish present day me had kept. But the truth is that the present me doesn't want to hold onto things “just in case” future me might regret it later.
Past selves
I’m fortunate to have a good sized studio space that includes a large storage closet that is home to not only studio supplies and completed artwork but also to various craft projects and art school work.
Going through all of this material, piece by piece is like coming face to face with my past selves, each item a reminder of my personal history.
My wedding bouquet.
A paper bag filled with stones.
Fabric scraps and yarn, reminders of the enthusiastic maker of clothing and draperies and knitter of sweaters and scarves; Creative pursuits that no longer interest me.
Magazine pages torn out or meticulously cut to shape, saved for collage; Wrapping paper and books that I stored for years and have never once thought to use in an art project
Old and unfinished art projects, begun then abandoned; All these things have to go.
Art supplies of all kinds that require streamlining and corralling
Wicker baskets that have been stored for years (decades), saved for “just in case”.
Off to the thrift shop with a bag full of gift bags and plastic pine cones, holiday ribbons and Christmassy jingle bells.
A paper bag(!) full of “decorative” stones from some long forgotten project needs a new home.
My wedding bouquet, a perfectly faded and dried bundle of red roses. Do brides dry their wedding bouquets anymore?
I’m a notorious saver of “good boxes” of varying sizes and descriptions. Each a potential storage container for yet more unnamed stuff.
Having less, feeling lighter
The storage closet before.
The storage closet after.
So armed with the resolve to have less moving into the future, and my two guiding questions, I’ve gone through every inch of my studio space, culling my things. It’s not always been easy, but I don’t yet miss the things that I’ve discarded or given away.
Having less has me feeling lighter and ready to begin my next body of work.
Simplified and harmonic.
Add some colour to your inbox.The Studio Journal
A THOUGHTFULLY CRAFTED COLLECTION of STUDIO NEWS, CREATIVE INSIGHTS and INTERESTING TIDBITS JUST for FUN!