An artist’s studio like no other
"Don’t touch anything; I know exactly where everything is."
Mary’s studio with the fountain commemorating her "Little Lion", Harry, her beloved West Highland Terrier
Mary’s studio is a beautiful mess, a work of art of sorts if you squint your eyes so that the colors of the studio show as if on an artist’s palette. It’s really what you would expect, and it's an uncomfortable place for someone like me who likes organization and order. It seems totally out of control, leaving me to wonder how in the world anything can be found. Mary, being acutely familiar with my compulsion to bring order to chaos, will quickly tell me upon entering her sanctuary, "Don’t touch anything; I know exactly where everything is."
There is a voice that emerges from the recesses of my mind that assures me that Mary is not alone in her beautiful mess. Rather, it is a trademark of artists, each having their own unique palette from which their work flows upward and out to the world at large. It is this realization that confirms that my creativity is muted by my inability to feel comfortable in the midst of unabated chaos, and what a gift it must be to be so free to follow one's intuitive guidance no matter where it leads.
Mary’s studio spaces have taken many forms over the years. Her first studio space was defined by a corner of a room. It was just enough space to place an easel and position a chair accordingly. If you can imagine for a moment, the very act of claiming a space takes a little courage since you are now proclaiming that you are committed to your inspired craft. After all, those around you will expect great things to appear with each brush stroke.
Unsatisfied with the lack of space and coincidental with the renovation of a space in the basement, Mary claimed a new space under the house for her studio, aptly named "The Hole". Her new studio was a huge upgrade, as it was fully dedicated to her and her art. The new studio did have some drawbacks, though, as the ceiling was low, preventing her easel from being raised to full height. Consequently, Mary would crouch in an obviously uncomfortable position to attend to details on a life-sized portrait mounted on a lowered easel. This, however, did not discourage Mary, as she developed a skill known to many portrait artists: the ability to apply details to a canvas while the portrait is upside down on the easel.
"The Hole" served as Mary’s studio for many years until 2011, when Mary moved into a studio space in a building located in uptown Shelby, North Carolina. It was a large space with high ceilings and plenty of lighting. It was a dramatic change for Mary, as her private work routine was now visible to the community at large. Her friends, neighbors, and neighborhood bystanders would stop by to say hello and ask about her artwork. Her popularity increased as a result of being out in public, and she received offers to take part in several community activities that benefited the arts. The drawback was that, even though she enjoyed chatting with customers who dropped by while she was working, it took her attention away from her task at hand.
In 2014, Mary made the difficult decision to leave her uptown studio to return to "The Hole" for the sake of convenience and to focus on her work without distractions. Her departure from uptown Shelby was bittersweet because it marked the end of many happy memories of the people, personalities, laughter, and sense of camaraderie with the other local business owners. Her feelings of missing the uptown studio were ultimately offset by the comfort and familiarity of working from home once again.
In time, however, the lack of space forced Mary to rethink her work-at-home strategy, and she began considering the possibilities of renovating a dated outbuilding on the property as a studio. Mary began work on a studio design using computer animation software that proposed a 360-square-foot space with vaulted ceilings and a wall of windows from floor to ceiling. The concept was to build a studio that had the feel of the original outbuilding and utilized as much of the original structure as possible.
Ground was broken in September 2017, and the studio was completed the following May. Many of the structural elements used in the construction of Mary's studio, including doors, windows, and a barnwood ceiling, are all reclaimed materials from local salvage yards. A huge set of 9-foot double doors opens into a garden area that features a water fountain that was installed in memory of one of her beloved West Highland Terriers, Harry.
After completion, Mary's studio, which has evolved to reflect her obsession with work surfaces and art supplies
Today, stretched canvases, frames, unfinished paintings, finished paintings, work tables, easels, computers, monitors, and much more can be found in Mary's studio. It’s a magical place where one-of-a-kind things that are, by most measures, priceless emerge. There isn't a day that goes by when Mary isn't in communication with people from all over the world who are providing her images to paint, leaving comments on her work, or talking about a commission that is developing on one of Mary's easels. It's a universe that, truly, only other creatives can comprehend. It is a beautiful mess for the rest of us, me included. And you better not touch or move anything because Mary knows exactly where everything is.