Tag Archives: studio

What I’ve been listening to in the studio

Posted on February 28, 2021 | 2 comments

It’s no great secret to anyone who knows me that I read…a lot! But I also spend a lot of time in the studio. I listen to the radio, mostly NPR or music. Play some favorite CDs. Yes, I’m of that age.

But one of my favorite things to do is to listen to recorded books. And my particular favorites are biographies or tales of heroic deeds or periods of history.

We don’t have the high speed internet to listen to podcasts, and audio books take awhile to download. But we are blessed with a fabulous library with an extensive recorded book collection.

Listening to these recorded books doesn’t seem to interfere with my painting. However, I often recall the book that I was listening to as I painted a particular painting.

I got into the habit of listening to recorded books when I had a fifty mile commute. Also, they are very enjoyable while driving on vacation. Although once the family was enjoying the audio version of The Green Mile when we discovered that I’d only taken out the first volume. Very disappointing.

So, these are a few of my favorite recorded books for the past year, mostly biographies or historical. I listen to fiction as well but this is the short list. And I don’t hesitate to stop listening to a recorded book if I don’t like it. Life is short and there are just too many other choices.

The boys in the boat [sound recording] : nine Americans and their epic quest for gold at the 1936 Olympics (2013) By Brown, Daniel, 1951- I found this true story of a bunch of working class and farmer’s kids who competed in the rowing competition in the 1936 German Olympics fascinating. They didn’t know anything about rowing and were one of the least-likely teams to reach this status and to go on to represent the United States. From the University of Washington, to winning the national competition, to Germany and back home to pre-war America, this is a story you’ll not forget soon.

Benjamin Franklin [sound recording] : an American life (2004) By Isaacson, Walter. This twenty-plus set of CDs is a daunting project but worth it. Franklin was so intelligent, industrious, and sociable. His influence on a nation in infancy cannot be overestimated. He lived a very long time which is why the recording is so long.

Steve Jobs [sound recording] (2011) By Isaacson, Walter. I had wanted to read this book for a long time but didn’t have the time or patience to do so. Actually, I really just wanted to know more about what made Steve Jobs tick. Frankly, I didn’t care for him very much by the time I finished the audio but it was interesting to learn about the early days of the digital tidal wave.

Cronkite [sound recording] (2012) By Brinkley, Douglas. Walter Cronkite was a television news staple to those of us who grew up in the 60s and 70s. People trusted him. I was too young to remember when our family first began watching the nightly news but I certainly remember him for many significant moments. News stories dealing with a man landing on the moon, the Vietnam war, civil unrest and so on. As Lyndon Johnson said, “If I’ve lost Cronkite, I’ve lost Middle America.”

Becoming [sound recording] (2018) By Obama, Michelle, 1964- I wasn’t sure how I would like this but it was very refreshing. Read by the author herself, she was pretty open about not wanting to get involved in politics but followed her husband in his dreams. What I really enjoyed was learning about the security details and life behind the scenes in the White House. How does one actually raise a family in this environment? Very commendable.

Educated [sound recording] : a memoir (2018) By Westover, Tara I didn’t really know much about this book but had noticed it on the best seller list for a long time. Written and narrated by the author, it presented a lifestyle that I had never really considered. Very isolated, home-schooled by parents with some “eccentric” beliefs, the author managed to gain an outstanding education eventually. I later watched an interview with Westover. We should expect to hear more from her in the future.

This is just a short list of my favorites and recommendations of recorded books from the past year. If you’re still stuck at home, or if you have some long trips planned, you might wish to check out these options.

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Posted in books

Tagged recorded books, studio

Studio lighting options

Posted on May 12, 2019 | Comments Off

In over thirty years of working as an artist, I’ve tried many different types of lighting. While none is perfect, I thought I’d review what I’ve been working with lately.

Daylight from north window. Pretty even cool light, but, of course, not good for working at night.

First is just plain north light through the window. This is often considered the gold standard for artists. It is a cool and pretty consistent light. My studio, the summer kitchen building of this old house, has four windows in the main part of the studio. Only one window is on the north side, two on the east, and one south facing. Using natural lighting is great but not always practical, especially if you want to work in the evenings or at night. But it has come in handy on occasion during power outages. If you’re working in a centuries-old medium, you can just carry on without electricity.

Fluorescent lighting fixture with a cool bulb and a daylight bulb for balance. Great for a broad work space such as framing and matting.

I am unusual in that I actually like fluorescent lighting (most people don’t). I think it provides good light and is great for working, such as, cutting mats or assembling frames. I have two standard light fixtures in my studio but have opted to pair a cool bulb with a warm (daylight) bulb. Although this is difficult to see in the photo, it provides a nice balanced illumination for the studio. However, if I’m working on a still life, I want aimed lighting without the overhead fluorescents.

Old can lights on a track lighting strip. These get pretty hot but are useful for studio painting displays. I’ll probably replace them in the future with smaller LED or halogen lighting.

Another lighting option in the studio are the can lights. As you can see, they’re pretty old. I’ll probably replace them with the smaller halogen lights in the future. But these are really great for highlighting hanging paintings, such as when I have a studio show.

I also have several clamp-on lights (not shown) which I have used with photography tripods. These are inexpensive and great for lighting still lifes.

A standard goose-neck clip on lamp with a daylight balanced bulb. Some flexibility but not so suitable for larger paintings, creating hot spots again.

Most of my painting in the past few years has been done with a clamp-on gooseneck lamp. It has a daylight bulb. Unfortunately, it sometimes causes “hot” spots on the paintings (uneven lighting). I’ve tried placing it behind me but then I’m working in my shadow. This is especially a problem when working on larger paintings.

Recently I investigated some new easel lighting. First I tried the Phive LED desk lamp. This is made especially for drawing tables and has a really wide lamp head. It also adjusts to many color temperatures and intensities. Although it has a somewhat flexible head, I just could not get it affixed correctly to my easel. This was not a cheap lamp so I returned it and ordered my current favorite.

The Phive LED architectural light attached to my studio. The first part of the lamp is stiff and only the top part is articulated. I could not find a way to attach it to my easel without the actual lamp getting in the way.

This was my second option for attaching the Phive lamp sideways.

As you can see, the Phive lamp has a very wide head, but because I couldn’t center it, it threw hot spots on the painting area. I thought about trying to remove the clamp and affixing the lamp to the easel with bolts, but it still wasn’t articulated enough. Also, the clamp was not easily removable.

The most recent lamp that I’m using is by IMIGY with a super long and very flexible 24 inch gooseneck. This LED lamp has several settings for cool, warm and mixed lighting with several dimming options. It also has a delayed timer for turning it off. The clamp is much smaller than the Phive but I may also remove it entirely and attach it directly to the easel with some two-hole plumbing clips. However, the flexibility of the lamp means there are many options for aiming the light. The light bar is shorter than the Phive but the output seems at least equal.

The IMIGY lamp with a 24 inch gooseneck and many lighting options. Very flexible and stays where I put it it.

It is important to have good lighting in your studio. I discovered many years ago that if I worked under a warm light, then my paintings turned out too cool. Now I usually use a cool light which mimics north light which means that I paint a bit warmer to compensate. If you are unhappy with your current work space illumination, you might want to try out some of these suggestions.

The IMIGY light with cool light display.

The mixed lighting setting on the IMIGY lamp.

The warm lighting setting for the IMIGY lamp. A little too warm for painting but good to test the display.

Phive LED Desk Lamp link

IMIGY LED Desk Lamp link

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Posted in painting instruction

Tagged cool lighting, IMIGY, lighting, lighting for painting, PHIVE, studio, warm lighting

Studio visit – where the magic happens!

Posted on July 31, 2017 | Comments Off

My studio is the old summer kitchen surrounded by herbs, flowers and giant maple trees.

I love to visit the studios of other artists, to nose around and see how they work, what materials they use, how they store materials and artwork. Sometimes I get great ideas but it’s just wonderful to see what the other artists do.

So I’m inviting you to visit my studio.

Over thirty years ago, my husband and I decided to leave the corporate world and purchased a small farm in Southern Indiana. This was always a dream of mine so he mostly came along for the ride. If you are not familiar with this part of the country, it is totally beautiful with woods and fields, gently rolling hills, lakes and streams. And not too many people. I like to say it’s like New England without the crowds.

We live in a 150 year old farm house with a large garden, a couple of orchards, and plenty of the aforementioned woods and fields and streams. We raised two sons here and have enjoyed living in a county that doesn’t even have one stoplight…and we’re proud of it.

My studio is the old summer kitchen so my commute is about 30 feet from the back door. For those of you who are not familiar with this term, summer kitchens were popular in the days of wood-fired stoves to keep the heat out of the house…in the summer! They are very common on old homesteads in the midwest and south. And it’s very nice for me to have an area to keep my art separate both physically and mentally from the rest of the house.

Thanks so much for stopping by. Don’t forget to visit my art website at kgmiracle.com or my Etsy shop.

My Blue Door Studio,the old summer kitchen is about 30 feet from my back door. The blue is Electric Blue, a lucky southwest color. Hey, why not?

View from the front door through the studio. It is a two-room space.

View from my artist chair to the front door of the studio.

A broader view of the front room of the studio. This used to be the dining room for the field hands during the summer.

It may looks a bit haphazard but I know where everything is…usually.

Broader view from the back room into the front room.

This large pantry in the back room of the studio is where I store many objects for still lifes. The old wood cook stove was back here, too. I can’t imagine how many meals were fixed here, as well as all the canning that was done.