12 July, 2008

For Everything There is a Season____

Frau Framing: Priceless. Dog is Free to New Owner.


A time to create,

A time to frame.


Right now, we're framing. My pace in the studio is down to a crawl. There is one large extra-full sheet work on the easel, and some plein air works in a notebook, and maybe a few odd paintings to do. Otherwise, the onus is on mien frau to get the art framed and ready for the Bellevue Arts Museum ArtsFair, which is July 25 - 27.


Foreground is the Mat Cutter on the Draftsman's Table; Background is the Wooden Folding Table and Shelving Closet.

Here is a peek at the framing room in the studio trailer. It occupies what would otherwise be the main bedroom, and is at the south end of the structure. I guess it is @ 14' x 10', and is outfitted with mainly two surplus furnishings. One is an oversize wooden folding table that we got when the venerable and famous REI on Capitol Hill in Seattle closed. It is set upon a home made wooden cot, which makes the working height ideal for veteran backs.

The other big item is a metal draftsman's table which was redundant at a friend's architecture office in Tacoma. It has a massive top surface, and features a power outlet on one leg. The lovely Lorie uses the folding table for organization, her laptop which is used for archiving data, and a cutting area for miscellaneous cuts. The drafting table gets the mat cutter and frame assembly tasks.
The closet holds shelving from floor to ceiling.


the walls are one big pin cushion

Because the studio structure is a dedicated building, the walls are one big pin cushion for hanging framed art, and waiting-to-be-framed originals. Lorie claims that having the ready work hanging on the walls streamlines her tasks tremendously. In framing multiple works, everything revolves around efficiency. Of course, presentation and archivality are foundational.

We actually scored quite a few furniture items at the REI closing, and the opportunist in you may seek out large building surplus events to outfit your studio. I recently missed the closing of the old Spokane Art School and will forever wonder what cool furnishings I missed out on.

On another happy note, I am grateful to Pollocksthebollocks for the Brilliante Weblog Award (Premio 2008). I will tag some new awardees in due time. I am thinking of bloggers outside of the fine art circle for this, because I love to go exploring.

8 comments:

jafabrit said...

woo hoo congrats on the award, and all the best with the show. Ugh! framing, but oh so important.

That is some studio :)

Casey Klahn said...

Thanks, Corrine. In a weird way, using the new space makes the framing a little fun. Of course, my wife is pulling the heavy load with that.

But, I did all my framing the past two years, so I am very grateful.

Unknown said...

Congratulations on the award - well deserved!!!

& I love seeing all the images of your studio, even the frameroom!!!

oh the REI on Capitol Hill closed? Hmmm I guess I shouldn't be to sad, I lived on Capitol Hill for 2 years and never went in... just around it... but its weird to hear of such a fixture being gone.

Casey Klahn said...

No wonder the REI closed, with potential patrons walking by... Just kidding. I didn't know you lived in Seattle, Nicole! I think before too long, everyone will have lived in Seattle once.

The old store on capitol Hill closed, and then we opened the mega flagship monster store downtown. The old one was a lot more fun to work at ( I was the climbing lead ). I wasn't a brilliant climber, but I did meet every famous American climber of the day and some heroes of yore, too. Climbed with some, too.

TGIDWR anymore.

Casey Klahn said...

Hey, as I write this I am sitting on an old surplus chair from REI ! If you look in my studio pix, my bookshelf with peg board on the back was in the book depat. there. Boy, the famous climbers who bought books from there!

Martha Marshall said...

I hope you pay the Framing Frau well. I love the dog, and she/he would fit right in with my three, but the shipping probably would be prohibitive.

Casey Klahn said...

Ja, Martha, she gets the wholesale for framing materials and $40 an hour after the studio turns a profit.
Tune in at the end of the month to see the art fair pix, and you'll see the wonderful frames at market.

Our dog, bless his heart, is a rescue from a puppy mill. My tender-hearted wife can't seem to avoid mills when she goes looking for dogs.

So, his refusal to be on the leash makes him a reprobate pooch, but everything else about him is great. I would praise his smell and hearing, but that is the species' talent.

He asks for constant attention, but returns zero in behavior. On the other hand, I get a wild animal roving report every night!

colorspeaker said...

Congratulations, Casey!
UH, one month later, I know, but better late than never!
"Pastelist Extraordinare"-indeed!
Julianne

Abstract Expressionism, Art Criticism, Artists, Colorist Art, Drawing, History, Impressionism, Modern Art, Painting, Pastel, Post Impressionism