Monday, June 6, 2011

Creative Mess


This month’s Blog Carnival theme is “Studio Tour”.

We’re all voyeurs on some level. For artists, peeking into each other’s work space is endless fun. What tools do you have? How are they set up? What level of chaos do you work in? And of course, the supremo question…whatcha workin’ on right now?

2Roses studio space encompasses about 2500 sq feet divided into three large rooms. There are also a number of out buildings for storage as well as rock cutting and rock storage external to the building.

The studio is in a constant state of flux, and we work in an atmosphere of a slow roiling controlled chaos. Equipment is moved and rearranged constantly as we add or upgrade items, or attempt better work flow.  We always have 30 or more projects going at any time. These will invariably encompass a cornucopia of materials and techniques, and will range from production line to commissions to exhibition work.

Storage is an ongoing battle. We accumulate stuff, every imaginable kind of stuff. We have learned to stop asking each other “what in hell are you going to do with THAT!?” We know that someday we will need a mummified opossum paw to finish a piece.  The real question will be, where in hell did we put them.

So without further ado, welcome to our studio. Feel free to look around, and send us an email if you spot a opossum paw in any of the photos. We’re also still looking for a Burmese ruby we dropped on the floor in 1994 too. 


Fabrication room

Fabrication room

Fabrication bench

Fabrication bench

Faceting bench

One of big rock saws, lapidary


Small kiln and ovens, enamel & poly clay
Lapidary bench

Machine room


Machine room

Machine room
Machine room


Machine room


Resin/Casting

Rock Storage, just a partial of 3+ tons of material

Storage

Storage

Storage

Woodworking room

Woodworking room

Woodworking room

Woodworking room

13 comments:

  1. Fantastic space... spaces!!
    I think I saw the possum paw on the left in picture 5, the ruby -- top left picture 2, and Waldo is in picture 4 behind the flex shaft!

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  2. Thanks Evelyn. That explains why nobody knows where Waldo is.

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  3. Gosh, so many tools! I am jealous. Looks like heaven to me :)

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  4. wooowww! amazing. i'm kind of speechless! is there anything you guys don't do?

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  5. Absolutey fabulous space!! Great place to spend your days. Thanks for the tour.

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  6. Huge! It looks like you do larger things than jewelry here.
    Please send me the possum paw if you can't think of something to make with it! ;)

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  7. Disneyland on steroids as far as I'm concerned!

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  8. I'm so envious of all your tools and equipment! Awesome space.

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  9. Thank you all. Full disclosure, it took us over 30 years to build this studio and accumulate all the tools - and we're still at it.

    Cynthia, we do everything from furniture and small sculpture to taxidermy in there. We didn't show the taxidermy area because it just weirds people out.

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  10. WOW !
    Love seeing your studio and the spaces where you create !!
    Thanks for sharing !! ♥

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  11. Good Grief! You have more space and kit than we have at our college! Do you live there too?....I didn't see any hammocks. I know I'd live in there ;-)

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  12. Its like a Dickens novel at 2Roses, Maria. We sleep amid the rubble in our hovel, typically eating at our bench, toasting stale crusts of bread with our jewelry torch.

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