Behind the scenes: building an art studio
It’s a common dream amongst artists to have a dedicated studio space built specially for you. I think it might be less common to believe you can actually have that. For me it was always an ‘it would be lovely one day’ kind of dream.
And then I moved to Cornwall, and ‘one day’ arrived.
{Yes, it was totally that simple. ;)}
This slideshow documents the progress of the studio build, from lovely grassy area at the bottom of the garden, through some alarming destruction, to the completed building.
I’d like to say I built it myself, but it’s important in life to know your limitations, so I hired the phenomenal Tom Sharp and Hugh Lincoln, of Lincoln Sharp Contractors, to do it for me. They are also responsible for the total renovation of the barn conversion that is now my new home.
There were plenty of horror stories that came out of the woodwork when I started talking about the renovation and build, and I’m happy to report that Hugh and Tom’s work {and presence} literally could not have been further from that. You know you’ve made a good choice when you’re handed a colour coded spreadsheet of all the planned stages of the build right at the start. I couldn’t have asked for more efficient, creative, focused, skilled, dedicated, lovely builders.
There were a couple of delays due to unforeseen circumstances, but with both barn and studio completed within nine months, I don’t have a single complaint.
Anyway, back to the studio.
The plan, drawn up by an architect, was to build a simple studio that would have storage space, a corner for making coffee, and a toilet. I wanted to be able to ‘go to work’ and not have to run back to the house for anything, which tends to break the flow.
So the studio would need plumbing and electrics, and then it seemed silly not to make a little shower room and kitchenette, since we were running the cables down there and putting in a small septic tank anyway. It wouldn’t cost much more and would give the building possible alternative future uses, such as guest space, holiday let potential, or a place for me to stay if I decided to let out the main house at some point.
The storage space would be up on a mezzanine level, reached by a ladder. I could store canvases and other supplies up there, but it could also serve as a sleeping area.
And so the shed style studio I’d tentatively been envisaging became a small house.
You may be wondering what all that meant for the budget. Without going into the finer details, this is not a cheap build, being put together from the ground up without a prefab shell. However, my business teaching online courses for the past six years has been quietly growing, and I was delighted to discover it would cover the costs without being wiped out entirely.
I did have a wobble early on. I basically hit my ‘upper limit’ of what I believed I was ‘allowed’ to have in life, but after a few conversations with wise people, and a lot of thinking and writing, I realised that:
a} working hard for the past six years meant I could afford this
b} it’s an investment in my career, as it’ll enable me to focus on painting and selling my work
c} it’s a business expense
d) it increases the value of the property overall
e} if I could make enough over six years to afford a studio, I could make enough to recoup those costs as I continue to work on both my own painting and my online business
This probably all sounds obvious and a rather unnecessary justification, but we all have upper limits, and hitting them can be uncomfortable - and inhibiting - until we clear out the outdated limiting beliefs in our way.
I’m still astonished that this is happening, but at least now I believe I’m allowed it. ;)
The following photos show some of the details of the build.
The studio is now ‘officially’ finished in terms of the build. There are still things I want to do, most notably sort through and tidy away a lot of the past work and materials I brought with me. While a working art studio will never be pristine, I want the space as clear as possible so I can focus on the work and not be tripping over things or trying to find things all the time.
But apart from that, there’s nothing between me and the painting now. Time to get back to work!