Suzie's Virtual Studio Tour

1.  What sort of artwork do you do and what are you currently working on?

Calligraphy’s been a passion for years (1971!), as you see by my studio/office I’ve played with acrylic, watercolor, mixed media and now I’ve got a rainbow of felted wool sweaters that are turning into birds.  Paste papers - could make raised, textured  paste papers all day!  I must be a 5th generation Portlandiac:  if it's got a bird on it I love it.

2.  How do you need your studio to function?  Give a brief description of your working space.

Like an airplane cock pit, a one butt art studio.  It’s great to have everything in arms reach, or just a roll away in the office chair at the helm of my cockpit.  I also have a huge teaching and work space, as well as a kitchen and laundry area for wet and big projects. The stair recess also offers deep storage

 

 3.  What do you love about your studio? 

It can be a total mess and I don’t have to clean it up when clients arrive.  Frogs live in the window well.  Sometimes when the window is open they jump in to laugh as the mess I’m making.  Sometimes they thump on the window, or just look in. I like the chaotic look.  It would be difficult to work in one of those beautiful designer studios.  I’d hate to mess it up.  The work space allows me to have groups of up to 12 people comfortably, and the large patio over looks Johnson Creek and is a great place to work on sunny days.  We often see deer, raccoons, wood ducks and have a resident Great Horned Owl! 

When I need a little nature break, just stepping outside my door leads me to a 3 acre roadless area on Johnson Creek

4.  What would you like to change about it?

I’d like to paint the walls, and redesign the storage from goodwill-and-home-depot-work-arounds to a real design for the space.  Also like to purge more stuff I’m not using, make more room for wool work, and a more ergonomic sewing set up.

5.  What would your dream studio contain?

A large space with lots of light that looks out onto the garden, where both my husband and I could work together . . . and that was warm, you know like a little sunlit village in Mexico . . .
 

6.  Do you have any organizational tips?

Because I enjoy sorting and organizing, I put like with like, and have things so I can pull a bin of stuff to work on a project.  

Do you have a blog or any event you want to promote?

I have a website for my counseling practice and SoulCollage®.  Every April I offer a SoulCollage® 

Facilitator Training here in my studio for 14 people.