Good-bye Studio 507!

Yesterday we completed our move out of our home, Tilsner Studio 507. In many ways, I am so glad we're out--it's too hard living between two places. It was a very, very long two weeks of moving furniture, all our belongings, and then this week--painting our old place. I painted every wall of the place when we moved in and we had to prime all our walls back to white. The "high quality" primer we bought was actually crap and made the job that much harder. 

I will miss Studio #507. It was the first home that hubby and I chose together. I will miss how me made it home, by painting all those walls and decorating it our way. I will miss watching the sun rise over the river...and how the river changes with the seasons. 

But painting all the walls white, made the place cold & sterile...and no longer our home. We said our good-byes...and now we're ready to settle into Studio 107. There will be no view of the river, but one can't complain much when you have 20 foot ceilings and floor to ceiling windows. Over time we will make it our home.

We're not quite done with the moving...we still need to move our stuff out of our Jax studio by the end of the month! My body is worn out and I'm really missing studio time...but the end is in sight...at least I keep telling myself that!
 

Moving into 2011

We are six days into our move. Despite being a bit under the weather, we have accomplished quite a bit...I've painted a few walls and started setting up the kitchen. With just a bit of help from my kids, we've moved most of the big furniture...our bed, living room furniture, dining room table...still some dressers to move and lots and lots of little stuff...and then there will be cleaning!

I've been going up and down between the 5th floor and the 1st, moving a cart full at a time. To say I'm exhausted is an understatement.

I was doing fairly well until last night when I hit a wall...the fatigue, the sense of overwhelm hit me like a ton of bricks. At the end of the night, I soothed my aching body by soaking in a hot bath and had a good cry. I needed that release.

It wasn't just the move overwhelming me. It's  all the uncertainty in my life. Whether you do it consciously or not, the new year seems like a natural time to reflect on the past year and then look forward. I always do this through some journaling and sometimes some visual work. Because of the move, I've been putting this off, but the brain works anyways...

In many ways, I am ready to put 2010 far behind me.  It was marked by the BIG event of my layoff last May. Unfortunately I am still feeling the impact of that event, as I am still unemployed and have not gotten any positive response from any of the applications I have submitted. When I am tired and feeling discouraged, I start doubting myself. My self-worth took a serious hit last year.

But I have been determined not to let this single event define me or my life. I have worked very hard to seize this change in my life as an opportunity more than a tragedy. I'm not saying that I am successful at this each day. I have had my fair share of moments like last night when I feel overwhelmed by my losses and the uncertainty of the future seems so daunting that I can't help but give in to a bout of despair.

But generally after a good night's sleep, I am ready to forge ahead. The new year brings with it many exciting possibilities. We are starting our year in a new home that already feels just that...home. And on the artist front...I am beginning the WARM mentor program and looking forward to not just dreaming about new artistic opportunities, but making them happen.

In the end, none of us really know what the future holds. There will always be bumps in the road and the unexpected flat tire that sidelines us for a while. But the key is to keep rolling along, making the best of difficult situations and being open to new, unexpected possibilities.


So with that, I am wishing for all of us a peaceful, productive and joyous 2011. Let's make the most of it. 


Here's a sneak peek of our move in progress, starting with the kitchen, aka "Command Central"--

The living room--

 And my studio, waiting to be unpacked--

 Now back to moving...

We're moving...

a view of the living space...and those windows...taken from the lofted bedroom above

...not out of the Tilsner, but just 5 floors down (directly below) to a first floor unit. I've been keeping this news mostly to myself for the past several weeks...not wanting to jinx it while we weighed the pros and cons and then waited to get our transfer request approved.

So today we got the call and I am busting at the seams, anxious to share with you the news that we are on the move in just a few short weeks!

This really wasn't a move we were looking to make...I love the coziness of our current space with it's view of the river! I have told my hubby on numerous occasions that I was happy staying put. But about three weeks ago, he was walking past the empty first floor unit and convinced me to take a look.

those beautiful windows

My hubby knows me well and knew that when I walked in I would be taken with the expansive space, high ceilings, large brick wall and those incredible floor to ceiling windows. We walked through and started to think about the possibilities of this space.

and that incredible brick wall some 20 feet high

Mixed in with the positives, there were some negatives to moving and losing our current space. So we made two visits to look at the new space and have had many discussions weighing the pros and cons. While the space is larger, it also comes with higher rent...which will force us to give up our outside studio space at the Jax (ultimately by moving everything into one large space we will cut our expenses). I love my Jax space, but having a studio space at home will have its advantages too.  And my studio space in the new apartment will be the room just to the left of the open space (see top photo)...it also has floor to ceiling windows--perfect for painting! The only down side to those windows is that they look out on a busy street. There will be more traffic noise and no view of the river. But we will have a lofted bedroom towards the back of the apartment. Outside of the windows and studio space, this was the biggest factor in deciding to take the space...it will give us much more privacy than we have in our current space.

In the end, we decided the positives outweighed the negatives...and decided to go for the change. Once we saw the space we simply could not stop thinking about how this space would work. We've already been dreaming of trips to Ikea and planning how to use the new space. 

So we will wrap up 2010 in Studio 507, but kick off 2011 with a move to Studio 107.

Lowertown First Fridays--It's an Holiday Art Extravaganza!

It's a busy time of the year...people are trying to make the best use of their time...so when you can combine a fun, relaxing evening of music and art with the opportunity to do a little holiday shopping (for that unique, one of a kind gift that will be remembered!)...well, why not! Lowertown First Fridays is just the ticket--and it's almost here!

(For those of you who are new to LFF, Lowertown First Fridays (or LFF) is an association of artists in Lowertown St. Paul who open their studios (or have a gallery arrangement) on the first Fridays of the month. Buildings will be open from 6 to 9:00 pm. For even more information about building participation, go here or here. Anyways, December's LFF is this Friday, December 3rd, 6-9 pm!)


Many buildings and many artists are participating in LFF, making it a fun night to head down to Lowertown St. Paul. Heads up on the construction down here: the streets have been paved, making it much easier to get around! There is even some street parking--free after 4:30 pm. (Lots of off-street parking too for a nominal fee--there's a big lot across the street from the Tilsner at Kellogg & Broadway. Also a big Transpark lot behind the Northern Warehouse.)

I will be open at my Tilsner studio--Studio 507...but I thought I'd tell you a bit about some of the other artists open at the Tilsner...

the work of artist Stephanie Guidera

First, head to the second floor where you will find two fine artists open. In Studio 201, you will find the work of painter, Stephanie Guidera (work pictured above). Stephanie is frequently hard at work during LFF on her latest painting...stop by and you might just catch an artist in action!

work by Jeff Hansen

 











Down the hall in Studio 209, Jeff Hansen will be showcasing his remarkable nature photography (work pictured above). He does amazing work and will definitely have work for sale!

painting by Amelia Gluba

Head up to the 5th Floor and you will find a number of open studios! Mason Weedman in Studio 505 will be showing how he builds and repairs fine instruments like cellos...and will have a cellist playing. Amelia Gluba in Studio 504 will be showing a number of paintings (such as above) and her mixed media sculptures...fun stuff! In Studio 501, Theresa Crushshon will be sharing her African American paintings. PJ, a jewelry artist, will be showing in the hallway and I will, of course, have my studio--#507 open. There will be lots of treats as well!


Once you've checked out the Tilsner, I recommend you check out some of the other buildings as well. Many fine artists will be open over at the Jax, 253 E. 4th Street. This is where I have my working studio...it's just a short walk from the Tilsner. I encourage you to check out the work of painters Barbara Evan and T. Young (aka Tracy Olson), to name a few! Wrapping up the evening with a visit to the Northern Warehouse is always a good bet. The AZ gallery will be hosting an opening and the Black Dog will have lots of music. Don't forget to head upstairs to the open studios of resident artists such as Rhea Pappas and Kara Hendershot and many more!
 

The Tilsner

 

I just returned from my building's All-Co-op meeting and I'm excited. For those readers that are new to my blog, a year ago me and my hubby moved into the Tilsner.  Physically, the Tilsner is a beautiful old building (built in 1895), six stories tall, still proudly bearing beautiful brick walls and exposed timbers in all 66 units. It is located in Lowertown St. Paul (walking distance from downtown) and if you look outside my window you can see the mighty Mississippi. (Just click on the Tilsner label on my sidebar to see other entries with pics of my home)

 The Tilsner in 1902 and then today. 

The building was renovated in the 80's by ArtSpace--specifically for artists. Truth be told, no one else really wanted to live in this area then.  That's all changing now!

My hubby and I lived in Lowertown prior to moving into the Tilsner. We loved the vibe of the artist community. It was a dream to move into one of the ArtSpace buildings.

It's been an interesting year...living with a group of artists...well, it's a cast of characters! Think about it...all those creative folks living in one building! I love that people here, for the most part, are very friendly. Having lived in many apartments over the years, it's a huge plus knowing your neighbors and feeling part of a true community. If there is a negative it's that with all those creative personalities you have many different ideas on how to do things...and sometimes we all want to do things our way (or no way!). 


So I was a little anxious about the meeting tonight...I'm not a huge fan of big group meetings. But tonight I was struck by how crazy wonderful it is to be living in a building with such talented folks. We started our meeting with a round of introductions (lots of new residents!)...we all said a little bit about what we do...there were photographers, writers, painters, actors, film/videographers, sculptors...it was amazing hearing what everyone does!

Just crazy wonderful! 

 













(All photos used are from ArtSpace, tilsner.net or the MN Historical Society)

Spring 2010 Art Crawl at Studio 507, Tilsner

Home Tour

Hooray for the weekend! One more week of work and then I will be off work for 2 weeks! It's crazy busy at work, so I'm glad that this will be a quiet weekend to recharge. 

I started off the day with a wonderful morning to myself. My hubby was off helping care for his daughter. I slept in for a little bit and then put on some music and started putzing around our home--cleaning a bit, putting things away... I decided it was a good day to take a few pictures of our home. I thought I'd share a few. First, some pics taken looking out our windows. We had our first real snow this week. The river will soon be freezing and barge traffic will come to a halt till spring. But there were still some barges parked along our riverfront.

Here's a few shots of our main living area from different angles.

 

I love our brick walls, large windows that let in so much light and the open layout of our main living space.  Since our bedrooms are on the small size, we use one as our guest bedroom and the other as an office/workspace. We constructed our bedroom at the end of our open living space--we used a long set of bookcases to design our wall. This open concept wouldn't work for everyone, but we like it. This way the bedroom is much more spacious and open feeling. We can also look out at the river from our bedroom.

Our bedroom "wall" from the living room side.

 

 

 The sitting area at the opposite end of the bed. I still haven't decided what to hang between the pictures, above the desk. I feel like I want to paint a special piece for that area.

 

Those beautiful windows and another brick wall.

When Joel came home in the early afternoon, we ran around for a bit doing errands and then I headed to the studio. I enjoyed over 3 hours of very productive painting. I can't wait to get back over there tomorrow to keep working on the series of paintings I hope to finish soon. If things go well, I think I will finish a few tomorrow and then will post pics.

Just when I was cleaning up at the studio Joel called to tell me the "Holiday Train" was parked outside our house. I made my way back home and since I had my camera on me, went directly to the upper level of the parking lot across the street to take some pics of the train. It was pretty cool, especially if you were a kid. Even for adults, it was a good time. There was even a live band performing in one of the open cars.

 

 

 

Finally, a shot of the Tilsner (our building) from the parking lot.