The Perfect Studio

The Perfect Studio

The Perfect Studio

has a door that closes 

There’s enough room there

to not have my back to the door

the kitties are present

There’s a big table

to spread out and make a mess

marked with years of creativity

Of course, there’s a comfy chair

that is big enough for me

to sit cross-legged

or even better,

a chaise lounge

A rug that’s colorful

that I can get paint on

and splash as I choose 

Bright leafy green plants 

to surround me and

keep me company

A candle that smells good

An altar that changes

every time I come in 

A chocolate stash

A fuzzy robe covered in paint 

A tall bookcase

filled with inspiring images and stories

A wall of photos of people I love 

A sign for the door that says:

The MUSE is in,

so don’t come in

Yet also people who respect that sign

and people who can come in

for tea because I like them

but only when they are invited

There’s a teapot

with tea seaping that smells so good

that my lover made

and a handmaid cup from a friend 

There’s a jar of local honey

from people that I know

and bees I am sure to cross paths with

on my morning walks

There’s music that makes me dance

There’s lots and lots of paints

and pens and pencils and charcoal

and places to play

There’s a stack of empty notebooks

awaiting my pen and story

There’s a window for seeing far

And when I get up really early,

seeing the stars

There’s always a jar of water

awaiting my brush

It’s an invitation and a blank canvas

or one that’s ready to be painted over

And of course TIME

Time to spend there, here

Intentional Creativity time

I want to have tea with the Muse

as I choose

What about you?

What kind of studio is perfect for you?

Shiloh Sophia

Dear Ones,

The photo above is our ‘film set’ and while I paint there when I am teaching, it isn’t my personal studio. I feel so grateful to have so much space to work in, but I also share this space and rent this space - and I can’t close the door - or make a mess and keep it messy.

This has been a strange phenomenon for me - to have all this space to manage and use to teach in but not have it be personal space that I don’t have to share. I have moved my studio at our campus likely 40 times at least in the past few years - and this particular set up just happened because we converted the actual film studio into a dorm. My actual studio here we rented to another artist. While I am super glad she has it, I don’t have it and I miss it. So I am just coming to terms with this feeling - of not having a room that I can mess up and keep messy that no one can come into with a closing door where I can paint and be messy and be a mess. #hotmess seeks room for rent lol. A film set is not a personal studio. This feels important for me to just acknowledge so I can move on. And since we rent the space I try to ‘un-shiloh’ it on a regular basis, which again means I am continually moving my personal space and items around. I know, I know many people don’t even have one place to paint, so is it really a problem? Get over it I say, but then I am not being honest. I need a big open space and place to work and dream and invent. Because the companies I run and the offerings I create come out of my own mind/heart sacred studio space which is mapped to the physical space where I work things out. So today I am just owning this need for a closing door so I can see what else wants to come forward. To be able to dream into what I would really like.

Sometimes I get up really early and go paint in the classroom or the gallery - but I always have to clean it up and make it nice again right away. So am I really asking for a space to be messy? To cry? To experiment while not making product or on the camera? A place I can have a private slumber party? I don’t know. I just know that writing this down was important for me. I have so much - I truly do. And something is needed and I am just exploring that. I also feel that sharing it may spark something in you too - about what you need. Even if you can’t create it right now - you can make a perfect studio list and honor it. Intentional Creativity is this - being intentional about writing this poem and sharing this and it moves energy - and creates a clearing for something new to emerge. I feel better already. I started writing this in New York and finished it this morning during cafe’. Blessings dear one, and may be get to the studio…

Shiloh Sophia

p.s. the above film studio photo has a quilt from Sumaiyah and a painting by Sue in it and I am finally making the wall behind my chaise lounge personal with photos. I will not move them….I will learn to occupy in a good way.

p.p.s. I am also wondering if my next studio will be around pottery - I have spent years potting in the past and I miss it. Maybe I am seeking something else. Musing on it.

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