New Studio - Page 2

Allan Rahbek · 11-02-2004, 12:15 PM

Patricia,
I am in the process of changing my own studio. I had a giant west facing roof window/ skylight. But it did not function because of the sun shining in at the end of the day. It is impossible to evaluate values in too bright light.

Therefore I have now removed this skylight and instead I will put in a north light window. I am going to place it above the wall to get the light down in the room. The room includes two store's, it may be called high sealing.

I have experienced that it works fine for me if the light is not too strong, but steady.

So my advise would be to enlarging the two north windows, in the hight, as much as possible and leave out any skylight. That way you can blind the lower parts of the windows to get any lighting you want.

Rembrandt did that.

Allan

Linda Brandon · 11-02-2004, 12:17 PM

Pat, is there any way there could be enough space for photo shoots or life setups?

If there isn't, then I think you are mostly concerned with sufficient light to see reference photos, right?

Patricia Joyce · 11-02-2004, 01:02 PM

Kim, Leslie, Allan,
Well, I think my instincts are being confirmed. I am going to opt out of the skylight. I was afraid that if I could not control the light I would be running from the glare of strong light.

Allan, this is a townhouse and I have no control over the size of the north facing windows, unfortunately. However, I am pleased that their floor to top window height is at least 5 feet high. With a seated model this may work.

Linda, unfortunately, I think the only life drawing I can do in this 10 x 12 studio will be portrait, but not full figure. I will probably also be attempting portrait photo shoots, but again, not enough room for full figure. I am figuring that if I place a model next to the north facing window I will have a distance between the model and my easel of about 8 feet. Do you think this is enough??

Marvin Mattelson · 11-02-2004, 01:18 PM

Pat, eight feet is more than adequate distance for seated portraits. Even lees can work for head and shoulders. The question is, how far back can you stand from your easel? The general rule of thumb is that you should be able to step back approximately three times the diagonal measurement of your canvas.

We live in a less than perfect world but I'm offering the above guidelines for your consideration.

Remember, any size studio is better than none at all. The desire tp create art will provide an artist with the insight to adapt their work to best accommodate the space they have to do it in.

Patricia Joyce · 11-02-2004, 02:35 PM

Hi Marvin,
I did think about that and I imagine myself stepping out into the hallway to get far enough back! The hallway is long!!

I have been working in VERY cramped corners in my small apartment for almost two years, so the idea of having a room in which I can shut out the world, have a dedicated space JUST for my art, is very exciting. As it is now, it takes me an hour to set up and an hour to tear down, each time I want to paint.

Allan Rahbek · 11-02-2004, 03:24 PM

[QUOTE=Patricia Joyce
Allan, this is a townhouse and I have no control over the size of the north facing windows, unfortunately. However, I am pleased that their floor to top window height is at least 5 feet high. With a seated model this may work.

Patricia,
I think the size of the windows are perfect. You even have the possibility of placing your model by one of the windows and your easel at the other. This is perfect.

Allan