The Un-Studio

I've been drawing for as long as I can remember. Art, whether I like it or not, is part of me. Sometimes I despise the skill, as it frequently proves itself completely and utterly useless. Other times it doesn't seem entirely worthless. Of course, when someone finds out that you can, in fact, draw more than mere stick figures, they find it absolutely fascinating. Strange. If I find out someone can draw I usually am mildly interested. Perhaps that makes me a bad artist. I did, after all, barely pass art history class...all four semesters of them. Ugh. Boooorrrring. Just sayin'. So basically, art happens for me pretty regularly. Someone always needs or wants something. Does this bother me? Nah. It's a skill and I'm happy to help when I can. Here's the problem: Drawing while sitting on an old cushy couch does not equal a happy back...or neck...or knees...or shoulder...and pretty much all in-between. There was a day when I had a snazzy art desk and a nifty chair to help ease this situation. Oh, I still have the desk. Problem is, I don't have a place to put it. Short of sticking it in our over crowded sun/play room, I'm all out of space for a studio. Plus it's freezing in that blasted room! Who can draw with numb fingers, right? Well...actually...I did draw with numb fingers when I worked as a graphic designer years back. No heat for the starving artist. Lucky me. I'm not willing to revisit that moment in my life. So until the day when me and my trusty old art desk can be reunited, I'll be cozy on the couch with my pencil in hand. I've actually been so busy with art lately that I haven't had much time in the evenings to do much else. (Hence my lack of blogging Aunt Rhonnie. :-) I sink into the couch with my stuff, plop on Vampire Diaries (or something of that nature) and sketch away! My brother-in-law has asked for art for his upcoming Chiropractic clinic. So I'm drawing lots of spines. I must say that not many people can say that they've spent an evening watching vampire shows while holding a spine replica in their hand. It's an odd image to see. A bit surreal actually. How fitting. The most fascinating thing about no studio are the kids. They love going into my bedroom and seeing the new things I've drawn. They don't quite grasp the spine images, but they ask about them. The most frustrating thing about no studio? Well...let's just say that my $1.89 per pencil colored pencils have been found scattered around the house. Just a tip: If you spend hours on end drawing something, never leave it sitting at the level of a 5 and 3 year old. Plain white paper on a flat surface and colored pencils equal one unhappy mama. I don't get mad at them...but I do smack myself repetitively in the head as a friendly reminder to put the pencils higher next time.