I was on a studio visit the other day to artist Daniel
Baltzer's place in Harlem and the first thing that grabbed my attention—even
before looking at his paintings (!)—was this cool little contraption he had in the middle of his studio,
with brushes sticking out of it and an inset groove on the tabletop surface to
hold his glass plate palette.
Reacting to my interest, Dan told me that the table was
actually one of those bedside tables you'd see in a hospital room. You know the
ones—where you pull a lever under the tabletop and you can adjust its height.
Dan got his from another artist and customized it with his painting supplies for the small studio in his
home.
| Daniel Baltzer's repurposed hospital table makes a great transportable palette, storage container, and brush holder all in one. |
Essentially it is a portable art case with everything he
needs to work with in a day of painting: brushes, painting palette, paper towels (in a
dispenser made by the artist at the base of the table) and rigged out with a
few drawers for the rest of his supplies. Plus it is still on wheels, so it can
be pulled wherever it needs to go.
Dan and I got to talking about how in a home studio, you've
got to be creative with just about everything—storage solutions, painting
solutions, handling solutions—and that problem solving seems like the
underlying trait that allows an artist to meet all those challenges. And it is
well worth it because, in Daniel's case, his studio is conveniently located in
his home so he can take care of his infant son while still being just a hallway
down from his studio.
Our latest issue of Studios
features artists from all across the country not only sharing their working
methods and painting processes, but also sharing the nuts and bolts of how they
work day to day. And that covers a lot of interesting, informative territory.
From artists past like William Merritt Chase and his experience in the 10th
Street Studio Building artist community to how Everett Raymond Kinstler and John
Howard Sanden tailor their portrait studios to their
working needs. Plus there are great articles on workshop and residency
programs that made me want to learn more, and I hope it does
the same for you. Enjoy!
And if you have a great studio solution you want to share,
leave a comment and let me know!
