Lots of space, but not in Manhattan. (See those frosted glass overheads? They're the only thing I have in common with Larry Gagosian)
A recent article in Crain’s New York Business noted that the high cost of living coupled with a dearth of part-time jobs has driven many artists from New York City
While I retain a place to live in Manhattan , my home of 28 years, I relocated my studio a few years ago to Massachusetts Boston
It’s a crazy “commute,” which I make in chunks: my familiar New York
Some of my contemporaries have done the same thing, but up theHudson in places like Woodstock , Hudson , Kingston
Some of my contemporaries have done the same thing, but up the
Of course some artists have simply moved from downtown to uptown, like Washington Heights, Harlem or the Bronx; or from Manhattan to Brooklyn, or farther out in Brooklyn or Queens. Some artists sublet their studios temporarily to make a bit of a profit while they head out of town for residencies. Some live illegally in their studios; others work illegally in a studio apartment that used to be their home before they moved in with a partner. Others share a space, one working during the day, the other in the evening after a 9-5, so that while they see one another's work, they rarely see one another. Oh, the stories.
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So this week, I’m wondering what you do for studio space.
. Do you rent or own?
. Have you moved from New York City recently? Or to here?
. How big (anything over 1000 square feet) or small (anything under.500 square feet) is your studio?
. Live/ work or work only?
. In and around other artists or on your own?
. Do you share a space?
. Do you share a space?
. What do you pay for rent? (This is important, so post anonymously if you’re uncomfortable.)
Who knows? You may end up with some new neighbors.
48 comments:
Well, I too live in Massachusetts, not even near Boston but in Amherst. I own my own home and converted the barn into about 1500 square feet of studio space. There are few, if any, serious galleries out here. I really have no connection to other artist and pretty much live in isolation except for my blog and website. It is impossible to break into any markets from the boondocks. All in all I pay 600 dollars per month in property taxes.
Funny you should ask, Joanne. I posted yesterday @ my studio far, far from NYC.
720 Sq. Ft. North Light. Secluded.
Panoramic images.
here at the art offices of nemo we work/live in a 96 square foot van. we give up our house and hit the road making and selling art all over the US. best move you ever made.
Mark,
Just because you live in the boonies doesn't mean you're chained there. Why not make a point of regularly visiting New York City and Boston--each about a three-hour drive, or Philadelpia. a bit farther. Regularly, like once a month. Even Chicago is a relatively short flight from Bradley.
Nemo, send pictures.
Casey, nice space. Please tell us how you embedded the URL link.
I really do live on the "far side of the world." I came to Taos, New Mexico because of the hermit life I could live. Built my studio, large. I am at work each day. There is property tax, but fabulous views, and wonderful place to live and work. Beauty feeds my soul.
I need lots of time for my work. I always plan to travel, but find my work, and the expense is more than I can do.
Joanne, I don't know any HTML myself. Every time I want to embed a link, I Google "a href" and look for the string that looks like this: Link text
Then, you cut and paste. The url of your blog page is then pasted where it indicates url, and the text you want to highlight goes where you see "Link text."
See, a country boy can teach a city slicker something. Thanks for the opportunity to comment at your popular blog. Joanne. Obviously, I envy your NYC locale, and visit there whenever I can. My favorite gallery is the Ameringer-McEnery-Yohe, I think on W 57th, if I remember right.
Wow. This makes me glad I'm not in NYC! I'm happy to have half a room in Northern VA. My space is maybe 6 feet by 5 feet, plus some storage spillover onto the bookshelves. Someday I'll have a real studio (I can't wait!), but for now this is fine. When I do, it will definitely be more toward the boondocks - I want it to be close to home and I prefer living in the boondocks! I'd rather have space than an uptown location.
I live in CC Philly in a high rise bldg.
I have my studio in a “Studio Building”. 915 Spring Garden Street which houses 5 floors of artist studios.
The building has a very interesting history: In 1909 the Reading Railroad completed construction of the 915 Spring Garden Street train station.
In 1981 the 915 Studio Building, as the public has come to know it was inaugurated, with a group of painters, potters, and graphic designers making up the role as tenants.
Today, only artists have replaced RR workers and the commerce is Fine Art not travel. Providing studios for over 100 artists of varied disciplines, from potters, furniture makers and jewelers to painters, photographers and sculptors
You can read the whole story: http://www.915studios.com/915_Studios.html.
The rent is $400 for a studio space about 24'x26' with 2 - 4 x 8 foot windows which open. The ceilings are approximately 12 feet high. All utilities are included.
Great studio space! Love it!
Hi Joanne,
Since you have gallery representation-it is a smart move for you to relocate your studio. However I am curious, how do you arrange visits? When you bring your work to nyc do you borrow a studio, are your galleries content to curate your shows without doing visits? For artist's without representation --isn't it worth the extra investment for a studio in NYC for gallery visits?
I lived in Manhattan for a while when I first moved to New York City. It was a sublet and my studio was either the surface of my bed or the kitchen table (it moved back and forth). When that situation became untenable, sticker shock drove me to buying property and across the river to Jersey City. In Jersey City, I (with my partner) bought a rowhouse. In it we both have our own studios and share the living space. My studio is about 124 sq. ft. with 10 foot ceilings. It is the largest studio I have ever had, including my MFA space. My share is about $700 per month. It is steps away from my bed or the kitchen and I can recreate Francis Bacon's studio as closely as I like as long as I keep the door closed.
I used to live in Philadelphia. When I was there, while there was an art scene, it had little connection to New York City and for some reason, I could not become part of it. And everything bad that could happen to a person, happened to me in Philadelphia. I couldn't wait to leave, yet I stayed for 8 years. When I finally moved to New York, in 1 month, I made more strides in my art career that I did in all of those 8 years in Philadelphia.
I came to NYC from Ohio in 1991 for grad school. Am on my fourth studio space (work only) in Brooklyn since 1993. For ten years I was in DUMBO, in different share situations till I could no longer afford the rising rents there. Since 2003 I've had my first private, but cozy, space in downtown Brooklyn. Less than 300 sq ft, but good light, high ceilings, in a commercial loft building with a lot of designers and a couple artists as neighbors. About twelve studios total, most bigger than mine, and many shares. But i'm the kind of person who keeps to himself, so I don't take as much advantage of the community as I should, plus my day job means I'm often there on off hours for others. I also have a separate storage space for older work. I love living and working in NYC.
My studio is in the basement ( about 180 sq ft not counting the dog kennel). I am really lucky. My commute is just down a set of stairs. I have an old "craftsman" style home that has several basement rooms. One for dirty workshop work, one for painting, and one for overflow. I live in the boonies (Iowa) and have to make trips to the city to see art. When I lived in Seattle, I had lots of art spaces, old warehouse space, basements, etc. Some of my most productive "city" studio time was on a city bus. Great post!
Diana,
I had a studio here for 20 years, so many of the art professionals I work with have visited the studio. The ones who know my work best feel comfortable making selections of new work from hi-res jpegs. I also have viewing space at my place here.
Artists need to be visible and available, but there are a variety of ways to do that.
P.S. I'm digging everyone's comments. Keep 'em coming.
Joanne, I do visit NYC and Boston regularly but I believe the only real way to to get a foothold is through making personal connections that eventually lead to gallery introductions, a process that can take years. Occassional visits and cold calls just don't work. It's really about friendships or at least regular personal contact built up over time.
Mark,
I totally agree with you. Marketing Mondays is all about finding or creating opportunities for yourself.
With regular visits to New York, Boston and elsewhere, visiting some well chosen art fairs,the friendships and affinity groups formed via FB and other online sites, friends and personal referrals, it IS possile to get your door in the door. It's unrelenting work, but it's possible.
When the price of real estate was escalating to frightening heights in Boston we packed our bags and moved to Pawtucket Rhode Island. There we purchased a two family. The first floor is the studio and the second floor is the residence (each floor has over 1200 sq feet) I have access to the work space and the family has access to me 24/7----and we all lived happily ever after.
Do you rent or own? I live in a coop apartment- owner occupied
. New York City or elsewhere? Boston
. Have you moved from New York City recently? Or to here? No,but I visit NYC often and other cities
. How big (anything over 1000 square feet) or small (anything under.500 square feet) is your studio? 600 sf total, 200 for my studio
. Live/ work or work only? Live/work
. In and around other artists or on your own? On my own in the building but in an arty city
. Do you share a space? No
. What do you pay for rent? (This is important, so post anonymously if you’re uncomfortable.) $900
Hi Joanne.... as you know ( I think).. I live out in the boonies of north eastern TX. I have to go to Dallas or Houston to see art mostly. My husband and I moved over to a 200 acre ranch about three years ago. I have about 950 sq ft of space in an old garage apartment separated from the house. Although I would love to come visit all the big art cities, I do love living out here. I still need more storage space and I could do with higher ceilings but I guess you just can't have everything.
Here's a link to a slide show of the rooms. http://www.cherylmcclure.com/studio/
My studio is on the property where my house is. We have 2 acres, and the studio is about 50 feet from the back door. Very convenient, and at the same time, it's a relief to not be working in the house anymore.
I'm a Jersey girl...born and raised, for better or worse. My Hunterdon County property situates me almost exactly halfway between NYC and Philly. I live in a rural/suburban area and have lots of trees and green around. Deer come through the yard, as do foxes, turtles, frogs, raccoons, tons of birds, wild turkeys, and the occasional skunk.
I built this studio, which is 320 sq ft, after occupying for years a tiny space in our Cape Cod that we called the nun's room. It was about 6 x 9 feet, with 4 ft walls and sloping ceilings.
Actually, a team of Mennonite carpenters assembled my modular outbuilding--just like the barn raising in the movie Witness, but without all the food, and with electricity. It sits on a foot or so of gravel, is insulated, heated, and has A/C, no running water. We were limited by township permits, structural issues, and money to one story. There is a deck with a roof, which is nice for sitting and sipping cocktails in warm weather, and for keeping the doors open when it rains. Currently, the deck is holding overflow stuff from the studio.
Since this is on my property, I don't have other artists around, which is a downside to all the privacy. The closest town where there is a studio building is Lambertville, down on the Delaware, but I could not afford a space like that. And I'd have to keep the floor clean if I rented.
Other than needing more storage space, I'm happy with my studio situation, but it is hard to get folks to come an hour out of the city for studio visits. I've had some studio visits with other artists, but getting curators and gallery owners to come out is a challenge.
Thanks for this post, Joanne...always interesting to hear about artists' studios...
After years of inhabiting a classic loft space in downtown Ann Arbor, Mi, I had to relocate as the building became too valuable for art studio space. It was a huge decision but my husband and I decided to add a 1200 sq ft 2 story studio to our existing house. In this way the space adds value to our home and we were able to build it to my specs. Although I miss the downtown scene (for what it is in Ann Arbor), I do love my peaceful spacious studio here at my house. I'm in NY and Chicago a few times a year and see art.
Hi, I live in Honolulu, where the rent is like NYC. Hubby, cat and I all live in a rented 350 square studio and I work off the coffee table, generally. we don't have any other rooms but we're a 15 min walk to the beach. A vibrant art scene a quick bus ride away and absolutely GORGEOUS mountains and ocean and weather that's always nice keep me inspired to create daily~ ALOHA! Love your blog ;)
Joanne, what a gorgeous space! It seems you've got the best of both worlds, although I know it can be taxing to make the trips. At least you're not far.
I found myself in a classic dilemma- to afford the studio I had to work more, thus I had no time to be there. I moved last year to Santa Fe and for now have made the garage into a studio to save money. Even as small as it is, maybe 300 sq. ft, it's bigger than my last studio in LIC that I paid almost $800 a month for. Still, I miss it. I like working outside my living space, I'm more productive like that, and there are nice studios here, so one day I'll probably rent again. When I lived in Brooklyn I had studios in Bushwick, Manhattan (PS 122, a subsidized space, and by far my favorite) and several in LIC.
I rent a 900 sq. ft. industrial space in Long Island City. I had a space in Esopus (just south of Kingston, NY) but felt disconnected to the NY art world and moved into NYC in 2005, first keeping my studio up north, then setting-up in Williamsburg but after two months was forced out by the city for living illegally in the warehouse space. My current space is work only for $1,100 a month. Not shared but one wall is a divider that stops 3 feet below the ceiling so there is sound/sawdust drift from the woodworker next door. I recently past up a chance to move back to Williamsburg to a larger work-only space because of close ties to a community and community garden in Queens. I am running out of room in my current space, but wait for the time to be right to expand.
I'm a life-long New Yorker and have been able to live and work here as a painter because of rent regulations and luck. I live with my husband in a smallish rent controlled apartment in a now fashionable neighborhood (as two artists we could never afford market rents). And, I had the good fortune to purchase a small apartment in a different Manhattan neighborhood 20+ years ago for a very modest sum. Rooms are small, monthly maintenance has risen sharply in past few years, but it is mine. Seeing photos of roomy studios with great light makes me salivate uncontrollably, but I'm grateful for what I've got, smack dab in the middle of NY.
Rent Studio in Stamford, CT. I moved out of NYC in 1992. My studio is 350 sq. ft.; work only
In a building with 26 other artists' studios & co-op gallery space in an area that is being redeveloped.
We are hoping that after over 30 years in the area the artists' building will stay. I do not share the space. Rent is $446.
50 min. train ride to NYC - I go to NYC very often.
As you know from having visited my studio, I am fortunate to be renting a beautiful work space in an old mill building less than a mile from my house out here in western Mass. I now pay $600-plus for 1000 ft with northern light from a wall of windows. That includes heat, electricity and trash. I've been in this studio nearly 5 years and have just one artist neighbor with whom I'm friendly. I have little contact locally outside of my day job and friends I had before I moved here to western Mass. nearly 11 years ago. I get to NYC a few times a year and to Boston galleries less often. I have no desire to move to NYC but have considered Kingston, NY, although that seems unlikely. We will probably move back to eastern Mass. in a few years with the idea of buying a two family, one apartment to live in and the other for a studio. I'll probably never have as nice a studio as I do now.
Most of the artists I know here don't have a studio separate from their living space. I always wince when people ask where my studio is and then seem disappointed when I tell them that I bought a house, where I live and work and hope that I get some equity out of the deal. No,it's not as "bohemian" as renting some big warehouse downtown, but I have just one mortgage payment, a vegetable garden, and can get up in the middle of the night and work if I want to.
I once had a studio in the building that the Painting Center is now in, it was a dump when I was in there, it was only 400.00 a month, then I had a studio up by the 92nd street Y, that was even less. then I had a home studio in Jersey City for a while and a one summer while nannying i painted on Chappaquidick all summer, I turned the room they gave me to sleep in into a studio. After that I had a better day job in Hoboken and paid 650.00 a month for a studio in Tribeca. then the babies came and we left the city because of my husbands work (9-11) and he wanted a career change, so the tiny home studio in Syracuse has been the most productive one of them all. We are off to Concord, NH soon (6 weeks) and I hope to find a barn eventually , but the house rental temp situation will has a good size room. I miss nyc though but i visit a couple times a year and I plan to visit Boston a lot
I just moved into a house and plan to use my garage as a studio. It's not perfect but it should do. It should be better than the temporary arrangement I had when I painted my first 30 works, on the kitchen table. We haven't settled into the house yet but I've still managed to move things around in the garage and paint a few pieces since we've been here. I plan to set up a more permanent arrangement soon. I have very little extra space in this house so I had considered renting a studio in Kansas City (I'm 30 min outside or so) but the $4.00 a gallon gas prices have killed that idea for now!
I think that thing that impresses me most about artists and our studio spaces is 1) how resourceful artists are in finding/making/making do with and in the space we have; and 2)how many of artists have a live/work arrangement.
Live in Denver. I own my home and built a 650 sq ft studio onto the back of my house a few years back.
As single parent, having a studio in my house is important. I'm able to get away for 15 minutes sometimes, 8 hours others, for work in the studio.
A photo tour of my studio.
Those NYC prices are just staggering! It sure is a different world than the one I live in, here in rural Virginia.
We recently spent about $18K to renovate the lower level of our modest home on 22 acres in the middle of ... well ... nowhere in Castleton VA. That gave me a lovely 600 SF space with work space, storage, restroom, and office/reading area. It is perfect for the kind of small format art I do. Also has a nice patio just out the door, overlooking acres of trees and fields with no other houses in sight and can accommodate 6 students comfortably for workshops. Plus...to go to work, I get out of bed, get my coffee, and just walk downstairs.
Pictures
It's fun to see the kinds of spaces other artists work in. Great post!
I moved away from the NYC area a long time ago and have spent my adult life in the middle of nowhere...but I can be in NYC in 4 hours and thats great. I refinished a 830 square foot pole barn on our property in an area with no zoning to speak of. I put a rail gallery hanging system on one wall and use my shelving to divide my selling space from my work space. The building is nestled in a gorge, its the perfect place to create. The major drawback is no running water but the house is just steps away.
I live in the burbs outside of Philadelphia. I built a 1200 sqft studio 100 yds away from my house. I love the short commute to work. I own the building, the house and the property and pay myself rent. ;)
I live on Vilano Beach in a small townhouse outside of St. Augustine FL in N. FL. No room at home so I rent a studio space in the back of a co-op gallery in the downtown of America's oldest city. I have about 300 sq. ft. Atmosphere and space is great, I also hold workshops there and if need be can spill out into the common studio area. In St. Aug there is a first friday event for the galleries every month, so once a month my studio gets cleaned and looks like a small gallery space. A good deadline and incentive.The rent is low but I agree to work the gallery two days a month just as the members do, also a small 25% commission.
My summer studio is in Rhode Island. My partner (husband) and I bought it about 16 years ago when we were trying to escape all the crack-heads down here in the city. We actually live in Jersey City where we moved after we lost our Chinatown loft in '85. So, like you, it's a commute to work that we do on a seasonal basis. The Newport building has no heat, so it means turning off water in the winter, but no different than what people do for vacation homes, it's just we go there for work. In the winter, I try to pick up freelance jobs in the city which I do in my (smaller) studio here.
Eventually we may just bite the bullet and do the renovation necessary to live in the big space year round. But I'm having trouble emotionally separating from NYC. Monthly visits just don't do it for me. I miss the heartbeat of the city.
I live in Arizona. While I would love the New York art scene, I make a few trips to Chicago, Santa Fe, LA and we have Scottsdale. It's not NY but my rent is under $500/month and I always have a spare bedroom, pretty large size, for my studio. I also have a carport for my outside (spraying, gluing, etc.) studio and a veranda/front porch for the same. The weather is usually nice but the summer is hot. I work at home, online teaching, so I really feel lucky. I don't know how you New York artists do it. I'm glad you were able to buy a place, Joanne and I know you paid your dues but I wonder how the newly-minted MFA artists without trust funds make it there and if the high cost of living makes the drop-out rate for artists so incredibly high (although it's probably just as high here...)
Joanne, I work out of my apt. during the Fall and Winter months with my collaborating partner, Rosaire Appel,
on digital imagery. On Memorial Day I move to my studio on the North Fork of Long Island--Orient.
I was near the towers and moved shortly after 911.
And yes, my rent of raised after that to the point of
no return.
I am happy working on Long Island, but I still don't have the printmaking studio I once had on Warren St.
Joanne, I know your work and have followed it over the years. The new diamond series is quite elegant
and strong.
My studio is 250 sq ft in a converted room in my house in California half way between LA and SF. It is a newer home with 9' ceilings and great natural light. If I have to work really large, I take over the living room! (dog and husband are very cooperative) or I rent an industrial space which in my area can run around $1200 a month for about 1000ft. I live in a semi-rural wine/ranch area of CA which for my work is a peaceful and productive place to live. I find the buzz of cities distracting to my creative process and yet at the same time miss the connections to the art world and no doubt many opportunities. I do get to SF or LA bi-monthly to check in on what is happening. Lately I have been attending Art Fairs as a way to connect with contemporary work, other artists and dealers all in one trip. Currently, my contacts and commissions are arranged online. Most of my marketing efforts are online.
You can see pics of my studio on my website. I like to think of it as my mini NYC studio. The outpost!
SeeStudio
700+ sqft in one large room for $585 with 12 ft hi ceiling, large frosted sky light, roll up all-glass garage door facing north, just like yours Joanne, private bath, concrete floors, four bright white walls, tons of overhead lamps. Good space to work! I live about 3 miles away. All of this in the "wilderness" of Northern New Mexico, just as I would have it! Great to visit the city, just not a place for me to live! But don't worry about us out here, we have Bruce Nauman, Susan Rothenberg, Richard Tuttle, Ken Price, Lynda Benglis, Nancy Holt, Lucy Lippard, Larry Bell, and we had Agnes Martin. A couple of good thinkers to be sure!
BTW, thanks for including the work in the previous post!
Best, Ted
I have a 18 x 8' outbuilding on our property that housed a freezer and junk when we bought the place years ago. It's heated with a space heater and cooled with a swamp cooler and has no plumbing so I get water from a hose outside. We live halfway between San Francisco and L.A. in a rural area where wild turkeys stand outside the studio's sliding glass door admiring themselves and gobbling. The nearby towns are charming but unfortunately lack an abundance of contemporary art galleries so trips to the cities are a necessity.
I live in L.A. in a one bedroom apartment. In order to have anything resembling of studio space, I decided not to have a living room. I covered the carpet with a tarp and I bought some folding tables to eat dinner while sitting on the couch.
This has contributed to shape some of my work. While I had been painting smaller formats and sticking to acrylics while still in school; I find interesting that my current financial situation has made this painting regime almost a requirement if a want to paint at all!
At least I'm still painting, sometimes...
i live in the kensington neighborhood in philadelphia. i live and have a studio in the rowhouse i rent with a roommate. its 850 total for 2 br, and we have our studio in the "dining room". there is also a basement that we can use if we can fix it up to not be disgusting. it works for now, but if i ever get back into my work enough i'll probably have to downsize to an apt, and rent a studio out of one of the converted factory buildings. for the money, the current arrangement is great, however, personally, i work much more productively in a busy, heavily artist-trafficked environment. its also harder to break into the scenes when you're off in your own island studio-wise. a large amount of the art communities are based around the schools (and their alumni), collectives, or where your studio is.
I live in Minneapolis and have a gorgeous 525 sf studio with a view of downtown from 3 south-facing windows. My ceilings are 14' high and there are hardwood floors, exposed brick walls. I would love to live here, but it would mean showering at the gym and eating off a hot plate. But it's $450/month and I'm super lucky my landlords are flexible about rent payment.
I also share a large apartment that may one day become my studio when my housemate moves out. It's a dilemma.
I'm slowly getting my art out, first at a couple yoga studios and next an upscale hair salon. I'm doing pretty well with sales but not near supporting myself on it - yet.
I currently have a 200sf studio in an artists' studio building in Gowanus Brooklyn. It's $520/month, and is basically a box without windows- one door and a lofted area that I store old work in. It's been great, I can't complain, but I'm moving to Philly this summer for cheaper rent all around. Also, even though Philly seems to have only a few studio choices with community for rent, they all appear to have windows, which is a dream here.
Ive had lots of different types of studios, in Manhattan and in Connecticut, but my faves are the ones in my home cuz I work so much. I sacrifice the publicity of a downtown space but I get to be near my loved ones. Currently Im renovating a large room to maximize light in Kentucky.
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