The Blackbird Sings Studio /// Photographs © Natasha Newton 2013
Over the weekend I decided that the time had come to have a bit of a change-around in the studio. Frankly, it was a mess. It needed to be thoroughly cleaned, stuff needed to be thrown away, everything needed to be tidied, and I was longing to rearrange the furniture.
I moved into my freshly-redecorated-and-furnished studio back in late Spring 2012, but didn't add the finishing touches to the space until the Summer. You may have seen it in this blog post here. Anyway, having worked in the room for several months, I decided that - as pretty as it looked - I could make better use of the space. I've also been having a lot of migraines and migraine related problems over the past few weeks and I know a lot of it stems from tension in my shoulders and neck. When I'm working at the table on flat watercolour paintings, I tend to hunch over and hold myself in a certain position for hours. If you're an artist or illustrator, you may have experienced this problem.
I bought a great tilted drawing board a couple of years ago (this one) but, in its previous location, my studio table was never fully extended (I bought this Ikea Bjursta table in white) and therefore was always too cluttered to make room for the drawing board. After months of suffering, I'd finally had enough. It became clear that I needed to find a new place for the table so that I could fully extend it; to make room for the drawing board and also make use of the great natural light coming in through the window.
So I moved the table into the nook between the wardrobe/storage cupboard and window, and the easel (for larger canvas paintings) and office chair moved to the other end of the room. The long metal cabinet was relocated to where the table used to be. It took the best part of a day to totally clean and rearrange the room, but it was so worth it! It's much more practical, and the space feels larger, which is an unexpected bonus.
In other news, I'm off to Aldeburgh with Leon for a week-long holiday (we'll be working as well as relaxing) on Wednesday. The cottage we're staying in should have an internet connection, so I'm hoping to be able to blog from there! I can't wait...
Looks great! I can't believe how neat you are, good for you, I'm envious. Take care of your neck and back while working! Do you do yoga?
Posted by: Laura | February 05, 2013 at 11:34 AM
Ugh...in comparison to yours...my studio looks like a shit bomb went off in it, right after being hit with a clutter storm...me? Envious, much? I so get the back thing...I like to sketch in front of the TV sometimes sitting on the couch, bent over, drawing in my sketchbook which is sitting on a coffee table...I spend a fair amount of time "L" shaped. It's stupid...but I used to draw sitting on the floor, or close to it...like sitting on the couch, as a kid, all the time (I got my first for real drawing table when I was fourteen)...but...there's something about doing it childhood style...unfortunately...when I do...I pay & pay...
Posted by: Evan | February 05, 2013 at 07:31 PM
Hi Laura, thank you, but it does look ultra neat in these pictures because I just cleaned it...really thoroughly! When I'm in the midst of a project, I can promise you it won't look like this. ;) By the way, I don't do yoga, but something like that would probably be great for me after spending so much time sitting... xo
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Evan, your comment completely cracked us up here (I just read it out loud to Leon). Mine will probably look like a shit bomb went off in it soon enough, believe me.....but I'm going to try my best to keep it clean. We'll see. ;)
Posted by: The Blackbird Sings | February 07, 2013 at 09:17 AM
Hi Natasha, Beautiful studio. Reminds me to organize my own stuff :-) Truly this space reflects your taste.
have a great weekend.
Posted by: Neelu | February 08, 2013 at 06:20 AM
Thanks so much, Neelu! By the way, I haven't forgotten the lovely email you sent to me and which I've been meaning to reply to for a long time... x
Posted by: The Blackbird Sings | February 08, 2013 at 07:28 PM
Ooh it looks lovely - very Zen! And Bookhou, how we love them!💛
Posted by: Belinda | February 22, 2013 at 07:45 AM
Nice studio! You have nicely re-arranged your studio. Great job done! Very appreciable! Its good to keep cleanliness around us.
Posted by: reception desk | March 04, 2013 at 11:51 AM