Symon Chow

Symon Chow, Photographer/Graphic Designer, Brooklyn, New York www.symonchow.com "I cleaned my office so I thought I'd take some pictures cause it's not going to be like this again for a looong time! I'm a freelance photographer and graphic designer who works mainly at home. I converted our old, small bedroom into my office about a year ago, the desk area used to be the closet. I removed the sliding doors and fitted it with a big sheet of plywood and there you have it, An Office!" "Close up of my desk. Aside from doing all of my work here, I also spend a good amount of time playing video games here, much to my girlfriend and dog's dismay. But I guess it's better then doing this activity in the living room :)" "Another close up of my desk. Of note is the fancy box that I made to hide all of my hard drives. its so nice not having to stare at those annoying flashing lights all the time!" "Home made/ikea modular bookshelves and storage." "More of the home made/ikea modular bookshelves and storage. At some point I had painted the drawers black during a different configuration... Note all the fine ikea storage boxes. I have A LOT of crap! Also, a tip for your readers: A simple kitchen towel will extend the life of your printer by years! Trust me on this!" "And finally, my newest ikea creation!... As a photographer and children's book designer, I need a lot of paper storage. This is my newest creation, 2 stacks of Ikea's Fira drawers, with a small table top holding them all together! Please ignore the 2 really pathetic looking planets on top of it. They were just repotted! I swear!" - S.C.

Lisa M Griffin

Lisa M Griffin, graphic designer & illustrator New Hampshire www.lmg-design.com www.lisamgriffin.blogspot.com I have enjoyed this site for so long but never felt my studio space was neat enough to want to display it. After a HUGE organization effort this past weekend and some help from a rather talented friend and neighbor, I am happy to show off the new and improved space. ;)

Eileen Reilly

Very messy desk. Eileen Reilly, museum technician, Toronto, Canada I work with other mountmakers (we make artifacts stand on their own when they can't) for the new galleries at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto. Our space is the former dinosaur area so not everyone can say they are surrounded by the "land before time" theme when they go to work. Many of the remains of the old dioramas (see trailing greenery) and murals are still around us. Forgive the messy desk there but I was hardly near my desk when that picture was taken so it really didn't have to be clear. I'm more tidy at home where I have the basement (not great for light) and the 2nd bedroom/den for the computers.

Alease Michelle

Alease Michelle, Collage Artist & Fashion Instructor Rock Hill, South Carolina http://www.aleasemichelle.typepad.com/ http://www.aleasemichelle.com/ Welcome to my desk. I am an collage artist and an instructor. And because I do both activities at home, I require two desk. One desk to work on collages and the other desk to create lecture presentations. I tend to have lots of projects going on at one time. So my project board helps me stay on schedule. I also collect images that inspire me and after collecting images for over 5 years, the collection can grow. So below is my way of organizing my images. I have a notebook for each category. It has really helped me stay focused. I love to dream about the possibilities of life. So here is my creative visualization board. I paste any and everything on this board and hopes of them coming true. Then I have an area where I showcase those I admire. It too keeps me focus on my dreams, and hopefully one day they might be a collector of my work. Well thanks for viewing what on my desk. Peace & Love , Alease Michelle

Morni

Graphic Audio Artist/ Musician East London, UK. www.mornimusic.com www.myspace.com/mornimusic www.youtube.com/mornimusic Hello and welcome to my studio. I live and work in a turn of the century Victorian warehouse in East London. I am very fortunate to have space to really spread out. There are 3 main areas 2 studios and a study. As a Graphic Audio artist, I work with a mixture of media. music, digital photography, video and other visual manifestations. My desk is actually two desks facing each other. I am a very tidy person overall and can’t start the day's work unless everything is in order. Still most of the time my desk still manages to fill up with piles of paper, but it’s always gone by the morning. Each desk has a computer one Mac and one PC. I use the Mac for digital photography and artwork. The very old PC is for the Internet mainly but I also have started writing articles on it. My work process doesn't start at the piano. By the time I'm working here, I already know the melody and in most cases I've written the lyrics. I always do the music last. It forces me not to gravitate towards familiar chords. The pencils on the cabinet are not for show. The worst thing that can happen to you if you are writing, is having to break your chain of thought because you've misplaced a pen or pencil. By the end of the day there are pens and pencils all over the place. It's very handy to be able to just grab a pencil and write. I use my old tape machine (which records) to sketch out ideas. The white cabinet is full of taped musical ideas one idea per tape. So I can come back and develope them into songs later. I finally record live, to my trusted VS1680 (ie; the grey machine) sitting on the workbench. For the full tour of my studio click here Thanks for dropping by : )

David Paccia

David Paccia, Artist Massachusetts, USA http://david-wasting-paper.blogspot.com/ Here is my drawing table. It is nicely cluttered as usual. This is a closeup of the top shelf. Don't mess with Dr. Doom! There are lots of toys to keep me distracted. The round object in front of Mighty Mouse is a speaker for my iPod. I like to listen to the Blues when I draw, especially Joe Bonamassa. The framed Charlie Brown I drew for work when we decorated our cubicles at Christmas. It is done in pen and watercolor. This is my drawing surface...although there really isn't much "surface." Lots of books and DVDs. Here is a better view of the DVDs, mostly classic animation, and of course, Crumb. I highly recommend the "All Monsters Attack" DVD if you are into classic monsters. It is about 2 hours of old monster movie trailers...good stuff. You can never have too many pens... ...especially when you aren't at home. These are three pen holders that I alternately lug around with me at all times. When I need a break I pick up my guitar. Note the monster and sci-fi movies in the background. And yes the plastic monster figures are "glow-in-the-dark." Here is a recent piece that I have done. Please stop by my blog and say hello.

Jen Renninger

Jen Renninger, illustrator Tampa, Fl US www.jenrenninger.com www.pleasebestill.blogspot.com www.jenrenninger365.blogspot.com Welcome to my workshop! My studio is actually an extra room in our house. Not too big, about 300 sq ft. The bookcase is the first thing you see when coming into the room. All of my collage materials are in the white binders at the bottom of the shelves. Everything else is just scattered around ... usually the closer to my seat the more something is used! I found the featuring sign at a local thrift store. Just love that! This is my desktop, looking quite a bit cleaner than usual! It has my computer, where I finish nearly all of my images. I try to keep some pictures of my family and loved-ones in close sight. I just found a Spirograph at a yard sale recently and here are a few of my first trials sitting on the desk. A few drawing placed together to make a light shade.. This is my supply shelf .. paint and pencils and ink.. Color inspiration on the bookshelves.. And an inspiration drawer from inside my flat file. I love to keep little findings readily available to organize into a collage on top of the flat file. Whats on top of my flat file at the moment.. And last but certainly not least, my constant companion in the studio: Barley. Thanks!

Randel Plowman

Randel Plowman, Mixed Media Artist Bellevue, Kentucky www.rplowmanstudios.com www.acollageaday.com I live and work in a turn of the century Victorian home located in Northern Kentucky. My studio space is approximately 320 square feet. This is where I work on mixed media collage, digital photography, experimental video, painting and printmaking. I have two Macs that i use for photo and video editing and a PC that i use for sound editing. The boxes under the work table hold found material that I use in my collage work. I am fascinated by what others discard and no longer use. This is my worktable. I enjoy having things around that inspire and motivate me. The painting area. Most artists that I know enjoy collecting things. Here is a collection of crucifixes and religious statues that i have found at local thrift stores. I also collect black and white photographs... and autographs.

Hilary Wagstaff

Hilary Wagstaff, Artist, Designer and craftsperson, Penarth, Wales, www.hellomoshi.blogspot.com/ www.ripcurlgirlblues.blogspot.com/ This is some of the stuff that is generally on my desk in my studio at home. I am an absolute magazine fiend, and so there is always some World of Interiors copies in the process of being plundered for interesting pictures of chairs or some nice patterns that I can pinch for a drawing or a collage. I am involved in an artists book project called 1ssue, so quite often, other people's work is on my desk too, waiting to be made into a book. I make clothes for Blythe, which is an outlet for my mad sewing desires, and extreme love of fabric and pattern, so this is Lily, sporting her new top amid my sewing things. As you can see I like to have everything neat and tidy and organised. I cannot work in a mess and have a tendency to become a bit frantic about chaos. My studio is at the back of the house, and has a lovely view over our garden. I have gradually got it more and more organised with these great chests from IKEA replacing an old plan chest that took up half the room. This is the place I think too, and listen to music, and is very much my domain. I get to have everything just how I like it in here and that means I can work and concentrate. I like to have all the elements for my collages and my books in drawers and boxes so that I can find what I need quickly, and also I keep so much stuff, bits of paper, small things for my boxes that I need to have them in some order or else it would just be junk. I make boxes and books, and one of my heroes is Joseph Cornell. The colours in my room are very calming, and I find this to be the most peaceful place for me and the place where I am most at home. It's definitely a place that saves my sanity, and keeps me focused on my creativity, and is a space I can reflect on what I'm doing and scheme up new projects. If there was only enough time... Thanks for letting me share my space with you.

Brenda Raub

Brenda Raub, Illustrator Mountain Home, Idaho www.brendaraub.com www.cre8art2day.blogspot.com This is my dog, Spencer, he likes to stand on my desk and patrol the walking path by our home. He will alert me when someone is walking by which can create interesting marks on my artwork by the startle his barking causes. My studio window is always covered in dog snot. Just looking at my collection of color pencils makes my eyes smile! Magnetic primer paint ROCKS! I put it on my studio walls and when I need a break from drawing, I'll write poetry with my magnetic words. Clutter shuts my creativity off. I can't work until I'm organized. Luckily, I have a lot of shelves and storage in my studio. Color, cool storage for organization, and quirky stuffed animals all get my creative juices going! Thanks for checking out my studio! I hope you'll visit my web site too.

Nicole Vachier Lozano

Nicole Vachier Lozano, Fused Glass Artist San Antonio, Texas USA website: http://glasstouch.net/ blog: http://nicolevlozano.blogspot.com/ I work with glass using a kiln to achieve results by heating the glass to specific temperatures. I have three kilns two that run on 120volt and one which uses 240volt. The larger kiln has a working space of 23 x 23 inches. The kilns are extremely well insulated and although internally they reach temperature of up to 1750degrees Fahrenheit, I work comfortable on a table only a few feet away. My workspace, which once resided inside my home as a dinning room table, gives me room to cut and assemble sheet glass prior to the initial firing. This is where I plan each piece, laying it out and writing firing schedules (i.e. notes that indicate the specific times/temperatures each piece will be fired to as wells as other possible variables). I keep basic cutting tools, adhesives, writing instruments, rulers and a scale close at hand. Under the table I store bags of plaster/silica which I use to make molds, like the faces at the far end of the table. I use wooden crates to store my sheet glass. I also have space set to accommodate tools I use to cut and abrade the glass after its initial firing. This includes a bit grinder, belt saw, hand held drill and lapidary wheel all using diamond bits/rings and water. Because of the use of water with power tools this area is outfitted with a GFI power source. This part of my workspace can get a little messy.

Carla Ferrera

Carla Ferrera, Architect, Rio de Janeiro,Brazil http://www.caferr.com/ http://caferr.blogspot.com/ I'm an architect and illustrator, but my main work is about architecture and well, I don't have much space here so I divide my work between two rooms of my apartment. Frida, my drawing desk, is in the living room, where I have a good light and fresh wind all day long. Frida has this name because at some point it remembered me Frida Kahlo's bed since it's such modified according to some phases of my life. I am moving to London in some days and I would bring it if I could... I can't remember when the mirror came but I immediately started to cover it avoiding to look at my own face while I am drawing Most of my material is kept inside drawers but I leave some close to me and they fit perfectly for all sketches. All my projects start on Frida before go to the computer, but I already used itself as my canvas too : ) Sometimes I work during all night long and I got these pics of my view from the window in a Summer day. A storm coming at sunrise. I keep my little office in another room, where I also keep part of my books and stuffs and try not mess it even more... This is my “Thing”. Unfortunatelly it doesn’t walk like it does with the Addams Family so I gotta bring my coffee by myself... :)

Virginia Cole

Virginia Cole, quilter Moses Lake, WA USA website: http://www.gallopingpony.com/ blog: http://gallopingpony.wordpress.com/ I'm a miniature quilt collage artist so I have a few areas to work in. This first photo is my cutting area and sewing table to the right. I don't need much fabric to sew miniatures but I like a wide variety. The stack of suitcases on the left serves two purposes, to hold art and decorate my booth at quilt shows. On the opposite wall is my collage table, I like having many things within reach. The bookshelf to the left holds old books, sheet music, buttons and frames. Larger frames on the floor. I have a fondness for painted metal drawers, they're great for storage and you can stack whatever you want on top. On this one is a wooden box of vintage optometrist lens, rulers and a metal container full of old postcards. Here's some more metal drawers on the collage table, papers, buttons and you can see a collage in the gold frame behind the books.

Katriona Chapman

Katriona Chapman, Illustrator, London UK www.iris-illustration.co.uk "I have a very tiny workspace, but my work tends to be quite small so it's not a problem as long as I stay organised. I fit everything around my drawing desk which was given to me by a friend. She lives on the other side of London, and it took three of us to lug it across the city on public transport. I like having a lot of images around me, and I have a frequently-updated collection of illustrations that I like on the wall next to my desk." "I keep my printer under the desk, but if I'm doing a lot of printing I take it out. If I don't, I have to keep bending down to retrieve prints and I usually end up banging my head at some stage." "My work is mainly pencil-based and I use a jewellery-box from Muji to store most of my pencils. I tend to organise them according to how frequently I use them, so that I don't have to hunt through ones that I hardly ever use when I'm looking for a particular colour." "I hate throwing away pencils that I've almost used up. I continue to use them until they're ridiculously short, then keep the stubs as souvenirs." "I have nowhere to store large pieces of paper or paintings so I just keep them stacked against against the wall. My dream is to own a planchest one day." "I have a few shelves for art supplies and general junk that I like to have on display. I have quite a lot of toys relating to children's books and children's TV, and a lot of handicrafts that I collected while I was travelling in Mexico. The big bullet is a new addition to my collection: I occassionally work at a large London theatre, and recently while I was watching a show there, an actor ran past me and lost one of the bullets from his cartridge-belt. I felt bad about keeping it, but I liked it a lot and I figured they would never miss one bullet when each of the actors was draped in hundreds of the things!" "I've put up various bits of shelving around my tiny room, trying to take advantage of the high ceilings that I have. They may not be the best workmanship that I've ever seen, but I like the fact that I put them up myself." -K.C.

Ellen Crimi-Trent

Ellen Crimi-Trent Illustrator, product designer Abington, Massachusetts www.ellencrimitrent.com http:ellencrimitrent.typepad.com "My studio is the old garage under our colonial house which is about 500 square feet. We took off the garage doors and put in windows and french doors to bring in more natural light. I get a nice view from my desk of the outside which today is rainy. As you can see its quite the walkway. We go from our driveway through my office up to the kitchen, so I cannot have obstacles along the way and I would love to use this space! To the left is my desk and I have quite the guardian watching over me. He is a reindeer that Fred Meyer stores made out of one of my characters. The kids all think that he is like a horse and climb up on him which has not worked out well." "This view is looking straight onto my desk as you enter and turn right. I have soo much stuff on it but find it hard to get rid of things when I know I will need them. Below the desk is a round black coffee table that was a prop for one of my Surtex shows which now houses products I get and miscellaneous goods. I try to every now and then clean it off, but it always seems to be the dumping ground. The painting in the back I did when I lived in Brooklyn in '91 and I had a studio with some of my friends. This is one of the few times I painted in oils and loved it!" "These days I am working on some new xmas patterns for potential wrapping paper and stationery products, so you see them here on my desk. I generally paint in gouache and mix my colors and keep them in these little plastic cups with covers. I used to get them at Pearl Paint when I lived in New York but now I can pick them up almost anywhere. My brushes are not that special, I tend to get whatever is on sale since I got through them allot. I have one of those very large cutting mats protecting the top of my desk and it comes in handy if I need to cut anything right away. My desk is an antique my dad gave me that I had restored along with the flat files. This is where it all happens folks!!" "Here you can see a close up of one of my cabinets that house some of the many products that have been produced with my designs on them. Also there is a much more closer look at them up close. Some of these were for Fred Meyer, some for Boston Warehouse and some for JC Penney. I have soo many products that I cannot keep them all in my studio, mostly they are in boxes in my attic. I love to use them when the holidays are around like Halloween for instance. those pumpkin candles I put along with matching plates on my mantle in the family room. I love to see my designs turn into 3d products. The kids love to get the fun snowglobes and stuffed toys." "Here is that same cabinet with another next to it and you can see my treadmill and workout bench! Yes! I do try and workout, and it's not easy with the schedule I have,but I have to make sure I get at least 4 in a week. There is also a mini bookcase behind this pole that has many giftbags that I have designed. I keep them around for when I need to wrap a gift in a hurry! The chest of drawers to the left is an old civil war chest and I use it to house many of my prints/ designs. The drawers are a bit sticky but they work." "This is what I see when I am sitting at my desk. I love to watch certain shows when I am working, like Oprah just so I do not feel like I am alone all the time. The antique flat files were given to me by my dad and I had them refinished. These too also house many of my designs. Although I wish they were a bit bigger. To the left is a bookshelf that is in the process of being made over, and to the right is a cabinet that holds many of my supplies and fabrics. I know that this studio could use some work, and I am working on it. I would like to give it a major face lift as they say and get more organized and colorful, and add a couch as well. I guess for now I will just have to dream about it and just keep concentrating on work. I know some designers have these swanky work spaces ,which is my goal in the near future. I am hoping by the summer I can get it together to revamp the place but for now I will just be content to designing in the space I have!" - E.C.