My Trusty Little Companion

Say "Hello" to my trusty studio companion.  This is my painting cart.  This little beast started as a set of Ikea storage boxes and has grown into what it is now.  Originally I just wanted something to set my pallet on when I painted on the studio wall.  For this I added the sides and a fourth drawer.  The trash can found a new home under it soon after.  Then I wanted a place to store items and sketchbooks so it got wider.  I wanted it more mobile so it got some wheels.  About a year ago I added the toilet paper roll holder.  I use T.P. for wiping brushes, pallet knives and my nose.  My last change on it was about three weeks ago.  It was a minor addition but an important one, I added a bar to keep the brush cleaners from sliding off the edge.

This cart been in my studio for about 15 years now.  The glass pallet originally had a cover and a handle and it is the same pallet I used to carry into Art Center for painting class.  So this pallet has been around for maybe 20 or more years.  Crazy Huh?

Here's a view from the other side.  I have sketch books, my goal organizer, misc. business books, a portable print portfolio, some magazines, brushes, paint cleaner, and such on this side.

On the other side (first photo) you can see where I store my mediums and varnishes under the T.P. holder.  Under the chemicals is the place I can throw reference material for the active paintings.  This space holds standard sized vanilla envelopes.  Each painting or series gets an envelope and all reference, sketches and notes get put in there.  This is held over from my commercial art days when I kept "job folders" for each project.

Here's a top view.  I have a coffee cup for a brush holder.  The cup is from Denali State park in Alaska.  I filled the cup with dried beans so my brushes stand up.  You can also see wells for pallets knives, a putty knife, paint sticks and larger brushes.  All the stuff up here kind of moves about depending on the painting and what tools I'm using.









Here's a peek inside the top drawer.  It is for extra brushes and some napkins for blotting brushes.  Lots and lots of brushes.  This drawer usually stays open so the napkins are readily available for blotting.  My pallet scraper is next to the napkins.  For oils, it's important to keep a clean pallet so the various colors do not get too contaminated with unwanted colors.  Sap Green can get into EVERYTHING if left smeared about on a pallet.




The Second drawer down is for the paints I most commonly use.  My basic pallet is Burnt Umber,  Raw Umber, Yellow Ocher, Ultramarine Blue, Naples Yellow,  Burnt Sienna, Ivory Black, and Alkyd Titanium White.  These colors are derived from what NC Wyeth used.  He's my all-time favorite artist and I studied his paintings all through college.  These colors are in the front of the drawer.  For the colors I use most often I purchase the large tubes.

Supplemental colors, located near the back of the drawer include Cerulean Blue, Cobalt Blue, Cadmium Yellow, Lemon Yellow, Cadmium Red Medium, Sap Green, and a few others that I hardly ever use.

The pliers are used to open the tubes. 





The third drawer from the top is for all my other oil paint.  These are extra tubes of the same colors as in drawer two or they are random colors that I just can't bear to give away but are never used.

Price range for a small tube of oil paint is $8-$25 depending on the color.  Brushes can carry the same price tags.   Yikes!!!!

 
The bottom drawer is for all the other "Stuff" that goes along with my oil paints.  It's a catch all.



Hopefully you found this kind of insightful.  I think it's always fun to see the behind the scenes stuff of someone's work space. Help gives you a glimpse as to what goes into a piece of art.


Take care,

Larry