Ms. Arty-Smarty Gaget Queen
Besides never knowing when your next pay check is going to arrive, living the arty life can be quite exciting. Standing in line at the grocery store in my shorts that have so much paint on them they have taken on a shape of their own it feels satisfying to answer the cashiers question "what do you do all day?". "Oh, I make art" I say with a grand swipe of my meager atm card. Little do people know that most of what my art-day consists of is running to the post office, typing emails, talking on the phone, updating my website, stareing out the window trying to think of something new to draw and lets not forget, spending all of my money at the art and Apple store. Here is a list of things that I absolutely need in order to make my art and illustration happen:
Tuff Shed - I have two of these and wish that I had two more. One for my bikes and another for a proper studio. The two that I have now are full of anything that won't fit in the house. It comes completely assembled on the back of a flat bed truck. It is just as strong as a regular house and can be customized in just about any way you want. Mine have skylights, shelves and windows. My father has four of them. We should start a Tuff Shed franchise or a resort.
Black & Decker MasterCraft Tool Box - I can roll everything back and forth to the printmaking studio or figure drawing class instead of lugging a bunch of bags and boxes. Sometimes it just makes sense to get the thing that works. It also fits nicely in the back of the station wagon. Yes I said station wagon.
Power Mac g5- Lets face it, I was a lifeless shell before this computer came into my life. It may seem like a lot of money but consider the fact that the computer that took the first men to moon was less powerful than the calculator on the g5. It is quite a bargain. And don't forget to get the a big screen to go with it.
Adobe Illustrator - Here is some gossip that heard about adobe Illustrator. The next version is going to be a big change. This makes me nervous since I don't like change and it works perfectly fine for me now. I am still using version 10 because the newest CS version just didn't do that much more and I don't need to wrap text into a rhombus shape too often. Here is what I read about the next v12 release.
Emerson Simplicity High Fidelity AM/FM Table Radio - I got mine for $10 bucks at Target. At that price they just forced me to buy it. I also have a Boston clock radio ($149 at Amazon) that is just about the same thing as the Emerson but waaaay more expensive (what was I thinking?). And, I bought a Kloss am/fm for $99 as a gift and the 10 buck Emerson is better. What is so great? Two knobs, a dial and amazing sound. I need my NPR in the morning. The Emerson also has a jack for your ipod. So there.
Let's not forget the absolute most important things in an artists studio: a hair dryer for drying stuff, couch or daybed for napping, coffee maker, cat and or dog, little refrigerator, lots of light, other artists for gossiping about other artists, tv for watching Oprah, a nice view, heat/air conditioning, a big table, blank walls, running water and no noise.
Posted by: Michael Nobbs | March 21, 2005 at 03:13 PM