My Current Studio Space: Now Kid Friendly!

I've been sharing a cozy loft space for a studio with fine artist Shabnam Nassir, here in Durham, NC for nearly a year now. It is unique, because it is located up a steep stairwell in the corner of a large school playroom for children ages 3-6. I have been teaching at this school for about two years and only recently did I get the idea of teaching small group fine art lessons up in my studio. I toyed with the idea for a while, since I was nervous about having the children around my paints and other dangerous material, but I did some reorganizing, brought some child-sized tables into the mix, and started making lesson plans for this age group. I figured, what better way to teach fine art than to do it in a real live art studio?

The children absolutely love this new addition to their program. They know that in order to be invited to my studio, they have to earn studio time by being on good behavior during regular school hours. I explain to them that I need to know that they can be trusted in my personal space. For ages 3-6, these children take this offer very seriously and show great respect while I am giving a lesson in my studio. I am having so much fun sharing my space with them, and I think it has opened their eyes to a whole different perspective on what art can offer.



That's all for now, but stay tuned as I am working on a website for my students to sell prints of their work in order to raise money for more art supplies for the children (All profits will absolutely go back into the program). Thanks for tuning in!


As a loyal Artist of the Fine Art America organization, I like to sponsor a page every so often.
Here are some links to check out artwork from some of the artists at Fine Art America (FAA) Enjoy! female prints photography digital art

My Studio Space Back in PA at 1505 Art Works, Downtown Erie

After sharing a space with my brother Eric (see previous post), I moved into a bigger space with fine artist, Kirsten Bole. Kirsten is an extremely active artist who likes to paint big and bold on large wooden canvases that she builds herself. Sharing space with Kirsten was motivating for me as she always had something new in her head that she needed to get out through paint. My time painting next to Kirsten was always an experience; Kirsten was loud and expressive, had full of energy, and loved to share random stories about her life. I miss her bad-ass attitude and great sense of humor! Below is an image of our shared space. The two really large canvases are Kirsten's.



This was a really unique and large space in an old building dedicated to Artists in Erie, PA. Here is another angle of the room. You can usually tell our art apart pretty easily. Hers are big and painterly while mine are portraits in smaller scale.



This was a few years back in Erie, PA.

Currently I share a studio space with Shabnam Nassir, a beautiful fine artist from Iran. I will post images of our studio in a blog very soon.

In the meantime, I'll give you a sneak peak of Shabnam's style. If you want to see more, just click on the image:


Needless to say, sharing studio space has always been well worth it for me. It's a constant reminder to keep making and creating, because with a studio mate, you have each other to share praise, ideas, input and constructive criticism.