I have good news, dear readers! I have finally organized my studio space into something useful! It took a decent amount of effort and internal motivating on my part, but the whole space finally makes sense to me and looks pretty sweet too.

Does anyone else ever struggle with that challenge? You make plans, and then life comes along and totally changes everything on you? Of course you have. I’m just joshing you. And yet, It is really evident that the past few weeks have been exactly like that for me. I have had so many great experiences recently though that I wouldn’t trade what has come up for what I had originally planned.

For example, I have gone out with friends and seen parts of Edmonton which have been hidden from me in the past. But those things are no longer hidden because I wanted to experience a new way of socializing. As simple as it sounds, going out on a Saturday night and NOT imbibing affords us the opportunity to meet all sorts of interesting people and it is relatively inexpensive too, not to mention that we can remember the night better.

Adding on to that idea, I have also been to familiar venues under new circumstances and meet some interesting people that way too – Simply going out to the Design Studies Portfolio Show (April 28th, Robbins Health Learning Centre City Centre Campus) last week and striking up conversation with strangers allowed me to begin to organize something really exciting which I will be sharing with you soon. I don’t want to give it away just yet, but let’s just say that in my experience collaborating can be way more interesting than riding solo when it comes to producing EPIC level creative work.

Today’s post is not about that though, it is about showcasing some results and discussing some more of my theories about creative spaces! So without further ado, take a look at some progress!

I may spend a little more time tweaking the space (move the computer desk near the door so that I have a larger wall to work on when making art), but this is definitely the kind of setup that allows me to stretch. And now that I have a conceptual framework, I can work within the bounds of that framework to produce something interesting!

Have you ever noticed the more expressive creative minds are not on the same track as the purely analytical types when it comes to how we use space? We seem to be divided completely down the middle of the road. Either we keep our space in pristine condition or in a state of emergency.

Of course, my space would fall into what is commonly called the organized camp, but I recognize that perception is often reality. What many people see as an organized space, with everything in its place, is not necessarily the ideal. To be more specific and come at this idea from a perspective I know, being classified as an INTJ on the Myers-Briggs type test, I am very analytical and prone to organizing my ideas and my life in ways that work for me, but yet what looks organized to me doesn’t match up to social norms.

So on the surface I look calm and ready, but on the inside, I am ready to drop bombs. *Wink*

It is a fascinating topic and point of interest for me, which I will definitely have come back to in the future. I have witnessed a lot of my friends and family tell me that I am a neat freak or a “control freak,” but the hard reality is that I hate cleaning up and spending time making up a space.

So which is it, am I into cleaning up or am I not?

I like to think in terms of efficiencies – I would rather figure out the ideal configuration of a process, set it up, and then work with it, until something better comes along. Detailed work and ritual are not my bag. But that doesn’t mean that I avoid them altogether, when a project requires that role to be filled or I’m researching a new area of interest, I’m always game to find that authentic solution.

I want to make something real, as LCD Soundsystem so eloquently puts it in their amazing song “Losing My Edge.” Check it out if you haven’t heard it before.

When it comes right down to it, when need to set up our lives in ways that work for us, otherwise we limit ourselves to counter-intuitive ways of working and when life does come along and change our plans, we are met with 2 different kinds of challenges.

What have plans have you made recently that you had to alter? How do you organize your creative space? I’d love to read about it! You can even look at this article to see how some other famous creative types have made use of their environment.

I’m out of theories for now, stay tuned for the next installment!

Tim!