With the end of the pandemic within sight, artists are reflecting on their experiences working and creating from home. While being home for an extended period certainly has its benefits like seeing family and pets more often, it can also have its drawbacks for those who work in a creative profession. Nationwide, artists are buzzing with excitement to get out of their house and back into a collaborative space of artists or their own studio because having personal space to create is something highly valued for artists today.
Avoiding Distractions
Having your own space to think and create in allows for a distraction-free process. Home life, while comfortable and familiar, is also riddled with distractions and sometimes even chaos. Whether it be a parent asking you to do a chore, a child screaming, or a dog in need of attention, not having a space designated for creating is not conducive to producing your best work. Avoid distractions by having your own space, whether it be a rented studio, an office in your home, or even the front yard or garage.
Art on a Schedule
If creating art is your career, it’s important to treat your creative process as if it were a job. These distractions caused by doing art in a non-designated space, often force artists to push creating to the wayside. A typical job has set hours for the employee to work. Having a studio or any sort of designated workspace can help an artist build their own sort of schedule. Walking into a studio provides space for the artist to think, work, and create, without distractions from the outside world. While an artist often has the freedom to create their own schedule rather than set hours, having any sort of schedule is helpful for making your studio space into a productive working environment.
Everything Stays Together
Working at home among the rest of the family is a recipe for disaster when it comes to keeping supplies together. The last thing you need as an artist is for your expensive brushes or tools to go missing in the middle of a project, or have your work that was drying on the kitchen table to suddenly become overruled with little fingerprints. Having a designated workspace is the best way to prevent disaster mid-project. In the middle of the creation process, only so much can be cleaned up between sessions, so it’s important that everything is right where you left it when you go to pick up working again. In order to prevent mess and stress, consider finding a designated studio or workspace to create in.
It’s Your Passion, Take it Seriously
Coming out of quarantine, many are excited to get back to the workplace, and the same should go for artists! If art is your passion, remember to take it seriously. Having a designated workspace for art, even if it is just a room in your home, where you can clear your head, keep your art together, and build a schedule for yourself can really help you as an artist to create your best work.
Need help learning how to stay on task with your work? Take a look at how our artists at the American Fabric Arts Building use their time and space for creating! If you’re looking for a place to set up your art studio, you can apply for space at AmFab here.