Before I could tackle the chaotic studio it was important to me that the rest of the house was calm and orderly. This took no time at all as thanks to Fly Lady routines which are second nature now, and my previous Kondoing, my house is, on the whole, a calm place - that 'click point' has been reached and I love it!
I have had a major block about my painting and unblocking is proving difficult. I've lost direction. Maybe I should write rather than paint. I've been a painter for twenty years. I've painted and sold several hundred works. Maybe I'm 'painted out'. I am hoping that clearing the studio will clear my way forward.
I will put that decision aside and deal with the practicalities of the physical stuff. Firstly I have created categories::
Saleable finished work large, medium and small
Finished works I want to keep (I may move these to another room)
Unfinished work
Blank canvasses
Work on paper which I will put in the plan chest (a major clearing task in itself)
Sketches, notebooks, cuttings, postcards etc - masses of this!
Materials - oil paints/watercolour paints/inks/pastels/brushes/pens/paper/sketchpads
Packaging (takes up a lot of space)
Old frames
Related paperwork (I have not been good at keeping records)
Quite a lot to accomodate in a space just under 3 x 4 metres.
One of the things I love about the studio is that I can play music there as loud as I like! Oscar Peterson helped me on my cleaning/clearing way - it seems to take up part of the anxiety area of my brain....
I was going to spend half and hour.
I spent more than half a day.
Progress!