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A New Member
Summer
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Hello everyone, I'm a homemaker/housewife in southern Arizona US. I stumbled upon Mark Carder's website about three months ago and have been learning a lot from the videos. I don't have anything to contribute here as yet because my husband and I are still building a studio using Mark's and David's expertise. We have the proportional divider and color checker finished and are working on the 5000K lighting now. The Geneva easel is coming and my husband has sketched out a plan to build all the other pieces over the next few months. I could use some help selecting the refrigeration for the 14 x 24-inch glass palettes. Haven't got a clue about what brand, style, or size of refrigerator to get! I don't live in such exotic places as some of you here on this forum which I am reading about with great pleasure. I went through a five-year program earning a BFA at a private school in Cleveland, Ohio but haven't decided which area I want to spend the next 10,000 hours becoming “good” at. I double-majored in sculpture and painting but got my best grades in photography so I think that I am in the right place here with Mark, David, and all of you. My husband agrees. I can't imagine being as good as what I've seen here on this forum but I have to believe that I can when you say that it is possible with the right attitude. So with that in mind, I look forward to this journey with you. Summer
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Comments
About not having something to contribute, trust me when I say that having a fresh pair of eyes to offer a different take on things is always a great contribution in my book.
And just like you I'm also at "ground level" at the moment as I'm learning about oxy-fuel equipment for jewelry purposes, mainly trying to figure out what would be the safest choice for a home environment without having to invest on something like a hydrogen torch.
I don't know if it's really that important to refrigerate your palette. I built an airtight palette box that will hold both of my pieces of glass. It has done a good job of keeping paint that has been mixed with SDM from drying out. It is designed to fit into our "back stock" refrigerator from Costco, but I've never done it. Also, I no longer premix paint and SDM in jars. It was a pain and a lot was wasted. I just mix on my palette.
I live very East and it would be a month of Sundays before paint would dry here on the palette. I think it depends on how dry your air is and with SDM you may not require the fridge. Welcome and enjoy yourself !
Of greater benefit than a fridge in keeping paint open:
Seal in small glass containers.
Ensure airtight lids.
Minimize airspace.
Displace air with glass marbles.
Store palette in Tupperware container, fill void with inert plastic and oxygen absorbing material. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxygen_scavenger
Could try submerging palette in water.
Store palette with cotton wad soaked in clove oil.
Another idea is to fill the storage container with an inert gas (helium, nitrogen???) to displace the oxygen
Oxygen is the agent that polymerizes paint. A fridge will slow it down, but not by much.
My small glass airtight containers keeps paint useable for two years without a fridge in the hot Mediterranean climate of Western Australia. In fact it gets consumed, even at my slow pace, before it has a chance to harden.
So wheel in the beer and wine...
Denis
My current working space is in my living room. Mark's simple easel (the 20 dollar one.), his palette table, picture holder, a little cart that holds my paint brushes and a few jars of mediums and paint. All of it is over a small 5x7 rug that protects my wood floor. My lights are clamped to an old easel. It's my other stuff that takes up so much room! The laminator, the printer, the drawing table, the computer, and my copious amount of paper and support materials. Basically, what I'm saying is, start now! You can! It will also tell you exactly where you want stuff. I know that because I'm short, I should have made my picture holder shorter. And that I need a vent hood because my favorite varnish gives me a headache.
I did not plan for a refrigerator...except to house creamer for my coffee. I'm an anxious painter. I don't paint for long. Usually less than a week so that gives me plenty of working time.
You background will help you tremendously. I know that my background in graphic design (photoshop skills) and drawing helped me become the painter I am now. My photography skills are slowly improving. (Composition can ruin a perfectly executed painting.) So your skills will be an asset!
Both of our studios should be done about the same time. I'm crossing fingers...the flooring is my gig. So is the kitchenette and all the wall painting.
Here is a travel blog showing some shots of Perth.
http://www.asherworldturns.com/bucket-list-perth-australia/
Denis