MY ART STUDIO
An Artist’s Art Studio, is where the magic happens :) It doesn’t need to be anything fancy. Doesn’t need to be a massive open space. Doesn’t even need to be tidy. All it needs, is to be a place where you feel comfortable. I started drawing in February 2013; I’ve moved a total of four times since than, so I’ve had five different art studios in nearly four years. Mad I know, but it’s been a crazy few years. I look at images of each art studio now, years later, and I’m almost transported back in time. It’s hard to explain, but I can feel what it was like drawing in each of these spaces just by looking at the photos. Magical!
MY FIRST ART STUDIO (February 2013 – April 2014)
This was my little art den for 14 months. I have to say, this was a special place, it’s where it all started. I lived in this flat for nearly nine years, for a few years the spare room was a game room, with a blow up sofa and tons of videogame systems and figures, it than became an abandoned storage room, before taking on his true form – My First Art Studio.
Main Memory from this art studio
Sitting at my desk every day, 7 am to 9 am working through my How To Draw books. Occasionally I’d look out the window and watch the world go by and every morning at 8 am, someone always used to beep their car horn lol This was a very peaceful place.
SECOND ART STUDIO (April 2014 – August 2015)
This place was home for 16 months. It was in this space that I started to push the tone of my art much darker, but it’s also where I started to struggle with focus. Behind that brown room divider was my photo studio equipment and clothes, I look back and feel that was a mistake. Dave Crocker once said to me on the phone, that you need to have a dedicated space for Art and one for everything else. I have since taken on his advice, and now only take photos outside.
Main Memory from this art studio
Art was giving me strength, and during this period my focus shifted from my art to my gender issues. I knew my art would suffer, but I was willing to take the risk. My heart was saying it was the right thing to do. To look back and realise how much art I still produced with all this going on in my life. It’s quite amazing really.
THIRD BRIEF ART STUDIO (September 2015 – November 2015)
I was only in this art studio for two months. You could say this was where my life fell apart for a while. I moved in with my Mum, believing we would help each other. Instead, my heart got broken. I haven’t really spoke to my Mum since. Too painful.
Main Memory from this art studio
This was the place I separated from my Mum for a few years, and started to find myself.
FOURTH ART STUDIO (November 2015 – April 2016)
This place was awesome. It was a tiny room, some might say a messy room, but I loved it! I was here for five months. It’s where I slowed down and asked what I really wanted out of life. I painted a few times in this space, and started to regain some of my focus. I have such fond memories of this place.
Main Memory from this art studio
It was small, but I was some comfortable. It was like being in my first art studio again. I didn’t have much, but I had everything I needed. It’s also the place I started self medicating hormones, a decision which started to bring clarity into my life. This was a very important space.
FIFTH ART STUDIO (April 2016 – April 2020)
Four Fun Years! This was in the same house as the studio above, but a different room. Slightly bigger, and I got the same peaceful vibe in this place that I had in my first art studio, as you could hear the birds singing in the back garden. This was the room I transitioned from Kevin to Sophie in, and the room I experienced my very first Lucid Dream … one of the most special places I’ve ever called home.
Main Memory from this art studio
A lil cat called Funny who used to jump in my window while I drew, recorded podcasts, and slept during the night. In 2020 the landlord sold up so I had to move … it was all very chaotic and sad, but also in a strange way, it felt necessary.
Here’s a photo of Funny the Cat :) She was so beautiful, so fun, and so friendly … she bought peace into my life. Miss you Funny!
My Current Art Studio will be coming soon … I’m just updating this blog post to get it formatted for the new site, but the room I’m in now already has many stories to tell :)
ART ENABLES US TO FIND OURSELVES AND LOSE OURSELVES AT THE SAME TIME
– Thomas Merton
