With the help of a friend, I was able to move most of my stuff into my new studio. I will need to make one more trip tomorrow and finish the setup.

This is all very exciting and surreal, and I think it won't really seem real until the renovations to the unit are complete. Here are some photos of what the space looked like before I moved most of my stuff into it. I'll take some more photos tomorrow, after I move the remaining things into the space and get setup. 

Yesterday, I went to Globe Studios to select my studio. They will be turning one of the large units (900+ sq ft) into two smaller units, and I submitted my application in time to get first pick between the two units. Mine will be a roomy 520 sq ft, which is considerably larger than the tiny space I have now (which is barely 90 sq ft). I'm thrilled by the space and the fact that I'll have double-doors and a window! It really doesn't take much to make a studio more desirable. And, unlike the unit I had on Duke St several years ago, this will be well-heated and well-maintained.

This has been a few weeks in the making: I have been approved for a studio at Globe Studios in Kitchener, and will be moving in next month. They are having an open house from May 23-25, so the past few days have been spent in preparation for the move and the event... and more work needs to be done yet! I'm extremely happy to join Globe, because their artists are great and very involved in the community.

Here are the details of the open house:

RECEPTION
Fri, May 23, 6-9pm

OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
Fri, May 23, 6-9pm
Sat, May 24, 10-5pm
Sun, May 25, 11-4pm

Globe Studios
141 Whitney Place
Kitchener, Ontario

I have been looking at Twitter for a while as a way for me to send short updates when things become busy. The next few weeks will be a bit hectic for me, so I thought it would be a good time for me to test it. A small block with recent updates have been added to most pages on my website. You can see all updates here (feeds also available from that page).

Today, I parted ways with Untitled Alabaster #11. Its new owner has been asking about it for a while, so I'm glad she was able to finally take it home with her. I now find myself in a somewhat strange situation, where I've sold four of the six sculptures I completed last year. It's strange because, although I love that my sculptures are finding their way to people, I am now without much new work for a portfolio to send to galleries and calls for artists. This recent burst of sales has given me the encouragement and finances to create more work, but time is increasingly a problem.

I have created a new Work In Progress album for my sculptures and added the photos I took for Untitled Alabaster #14 as I was working. The quality of the work-in-progress photos isn't the same as the initial photos and the photos of the completed sculpture because I used my camera phone for the shots. It was much more convenient, and I was less concerned about getting dust in my cell phone than in my camera.

After some persistence, I have re-shot and uploaded photos of Untitled Alabaster #14. I feel like a proud parent taking pictures of their first child, even though this is far from my first sculpture. Not only are there, coincidentally, 14 pictures of this sculpture (2 of which I haven't even put onto my website because they are very similar to two other pictures), but I also have dozens of in-progress pictures (to be uploaded in the next few days).

I've been working feverishly the past few days to complete my newest sculpture. I finished it tonight and absolutely adore it. After taking several pictures of it and watermarking them for the website, I realized that I forgot to keep a copy of the originals for slides/CDs to send to galleries, competitions, etc. I'm now completely exhausted after a very long day (although it's merely 3 minutes to 9pm), so I'll have to re-shoot the photos tomorrow.

My latest sculpture has firmly planted itself into my consciousness. I'm increasingly eager to complete it, and the past few days I've needed to force myself to stop sculpting so that I can eat. Even now, as I give my muscles a much-needed rest, I'm restless and itching to get back into my studio.

On the topic of studios, I met with the Chair of Globe Studios yesterday. I've been thinking complaining for a long time that I need a bigger studio so that I can expand into outdoor-friendly stones like marble and limestone. Soapstone and alabaster are not weather-resistant, and the small space I currently have can not handle the equipment I would need to work harder stones.