Inside My Studio

Well, the winds of March are blasting across the fields so I've decided to stay in my studio today and just for fun give a
small studio tour. Nothing has been cleared away, this is it. As is. A 'work-in-progress' is on the easel and my watercolour drawing-board is to the right. I'm lucky to have this space to work in, it's quite large and cozy for a basement and has three windows, two facing north so the light is good.













Here's my messy oil and acrylic station. The table is ancient, with an enamel top and heavy wooden legs. It's hard to believe our family sat around it when I was a kid. When we weren't eating we were allowed to draw on the top. It took pencil very well and was also used as a kind of bulletin board. Before a meal one of us would scrub off the graffitti with Old Dutch and a rag. My little friends were envious of that table.














The ironing-board isn't always up but right now I'm working on some pieces for an upcoming exhibition in the spring which involve fabrics and which I will post later on.














Some tiny watercolours hang haphazardly while the mirror reflects a part of the work area. Not shown is the sound system, an essential part of my studio. I have an eclectic mix of CDs to suit various moods, including Dr John, Astor Piazzolla, Stan Getz and Rimsky-Korsakov among many others. Often I just listen to the radio which, down here, receives only one station, the local PLANETE-LOV, broadcast in French from Hawkesbury. It keeps my French sharper and the music is played in both languages. Right now Charles Aznavour is crooning away. (Where would the French chansonniers be without the word 'chagrin'?) Earlier we had Simon & Garfunkel, Billy Joel and Tony Bennett. It's all music I get, they don't do rap.














And here's Louie the studio cat, looking a little disgruntled after being disturbed mid-nap. When not napping he's standing guard at the windows which he leaps up to from a) my computer table or b) my drawing-board. It's amazing how cats can avoid disturbing most tiny obstacles in their way.