The Reality of a Working Artist’s Studio (Well, Mine at Least)
Updated: 9 hours ago
If you're imagining a professional artist's studio as a perfectly organized, beautiful room... this is what mine actually looks like when I'm making a painting.
When I'm deep into making work, my studio almost gets consumed by it. Paint, scraps, reference images, unfinished paintings and materials seem to end up everywhere.
I've learned to embrace it. Creativity has seasons, and when I'm in a season of making, I need my studio to function as a working space, not a showroom.
Inspiration Ain’t Guaranteed
I've noticed that many successful artists didn't simply wait around for inspiration, they created routines that gave them time to work. Henri Matisse, for example, was known for maintaining a disciplined daily working routine, treating his art as something he showed up for consistently.
I've found that structure helps me too. Sometimes that means actually scheduling creative time in my planner. Other times, it means signing up for an art class or open studio so there's a specific time and place where I'm expected to create.
The Part of an Art Career You Don't See
Then there are seasons when I'm barely painting at all.
I'm photographing artwork, updating my website, promoting exhibitions, answering emails, networking, selling, shipping or meeting people. It doesn't always feel like making art, but it's what helps the artwork leave my studio and find its way into the world.
Both Are the Work
The business side helps support the creative side and eventually, it brings me back to the studio.
I've had to learn that being a working artist isn't about painting every minute of every day. It's about building a life that keeps bringing you back to the work.
Adjusting to the ebbs and flows of being a professional artist and learning to move between creating and promoting my work is part of what eventually led me to write "Sell Paintings". I wanted to create a practical business workbook built around what I learned while figuring out how to get my artwork out of my studio, in front of people and sold.
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