Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Fight or Flight?

As usual, I was going to post a photo, but did not.  I actually took the photo, but it was so depressing that I deleted it and opened the laptop to post.

The photo was of the staircase to my attic studio.  I was approaching it for the first time in two and a half weeks.  I was so excited to go up and get to work.  I opened the door, walked up a couple of steps, became depressed, walked up a couple more steps and then had to turn tail and flee.

I noticed how terrible my space looked.  How cluttered and jumbled and downright depressing.  Feng Shui experts would have gagged and fainted.  The entry is filled with a pile of empty cardboard boxes from recent mail order purchases.  Baskets of paints wait at the ready to go outside for fabric painting in the sun.  Old magazines clutter the shelving.  Receipts are piled at the top of the stairs, ready to be filed.  I hope none are from the last tax year.  Piles of dyed fabric wait to be heat set (some from last year).  Another pile has been heat set but needs to be washed.  Drawers hang open.  Shavings from stamp carvings cover the floor.

I CAN'T WORK IN THAT MESS.

Today is a lovely day -- warm and sunny.  I will do the last of the fabric dyeing today and add to the pile that needs to be processed.  While I wait for the fabrics to dry, I will break down boxes for recycling, vacuum up those shavings and organize stuff.  I can't believe I let it go so far out of hand.

I really want to get to work on some new things, but I know I can't do that just yet.  I want to behave like a child and just go play.  I know I must do the responsible thing and organize.  Sigh.  I really wanted to have a new masterpiece completed within the first hour of my daughter going back to school.

How often do others clean and organize their studios?  Every month?  Every week?  Every day?  Any advice?

4 comments:

p said...

well guess what i'm doing today and took a break from...thats right, cleaning my MESS of a work space.
i find i can create a few pieces here and there and have prototypes going on but eventually when all the floor space and table space is sprawling I shut down.
how often depends on how lost i am...the more I dont know what I'm doing the worse everything gets.
advice? not really. just go in there with relish. and play some music...drink some coffee and know that you aren't alone!

Ellen said...

I posted before and after pictures on my blog (back in March) and you can see how bad my studio got. It took a while not just to clean it, but to purge and truly organize it. I have to say since then, although it gets messy, it's been way easier to clean (about every month or so) when everything has a place. I feel for you, it's always a big job, but it's worth it. (and I agree with Paula, music and coffee a must)

I used to be able to work in chaos, but I can't now. It may because after having kids and having toy clutter added to my life, it's all too much stuff.

Fibra Artysta said...

Mine needs a serious cleaning as well. I usually work until I can no longer see any of the surfaces that are supposed to be tabletops. Then I get severely annoyed and attack the whole mess ninja style.

I need to do that now. Its unbearable and I can't work in there at all. But to be honest, if its not messy and stays clean for a long period of time, that means I'm not working at all. So I'm not sure which one is worse!

Bridgette Guerzon Mills said...

When I work I create a *big* mess. The interesting thing though is that I need to start in a clean and organized space. So I usually clean and organize right before I start working. It's actually a good thing because just getting my hands on different materials and odds and ends usually needs to an idea.