"Imaginarium Koi", Shauna Lee Lange Studios, 2011

We’ve been thinking and talking a lot lately about just how does one best go about juggling all the demands of the art studio.  It’s not unlike the rapid and unpredictable path of a group of Koi, the artist’s life is taking twists and turns all day long.  And in our research on different models of productivity, we’ve come up with three we wanted to share for all the artists who just continually find there is NOT enough time in the day.  Now, external to the belief that we have more than enough abundance and time will just open up for us and whatever other positive mumbo jumbo you might come across, the truth of the matter is that time is limited and demands on it are increasing.  I hope you get to try out the various models below and let us know what has been the most successful for you.  If you’re using some other organization or strategy for getting everything done, we’d love to hear about it.

1.  ART STUDIO TIME MANAGEMENT MODEL 1:  ORGANIZE THE WEEK IN FUNCTIONS

In this model, the studio artist divides the days of the week into group functions.  On Monday, we create.  On Tuesday, we produce.  On Wednesday, we record/attend to paperwork.  On Thursday, we market.  On Friday, we sell/ship/acquire.  On Saturday, we promote or attend events.  And on Sunday we imagine.  Given that the most productive days of an artist’s life are Tuesday through Thursday, you can see we’re trying to take advantage of the down days.  And as every artists will attest, all the great museums and galleries are closed on Mondays, what better day to put our mind to creative endeavors.

2.  ART STUDIO TIME MANAGEMENT MODEL 2:  DIVIDE THE DAYS INTO BLOCKS OF ENERGY

Many artists I know are either night people or not.  And so in Model 2, the day has to be broken down into segments where we can be the most productive, the most uninterrupted, and the most useful to ourselves.  In this example, Monday through Sunday I am painting in the mornings (well, not me because I am a double digit woman before my wheels even start turning) and in the afternoons, I am marketing.  What I don’t like about this model is it doesn’t take into account the old adage that “The afternoon knows what the morning doesn’t.”  Meaning, as any one day progresses, the complexity and available hours become an increased factor in managing the day.  So time management pros will tell you that in doing the thing that is most difficult or unliked first and consistently, you are actually creating windows of time for yourself.  Also, I do not like having the discipline hanging over my head that if I want to continue painting into the middle of the night, I can’t because I have to stop at 12:00 noon.  However, if you want or need to preserve that marketing time, I don’t know too many art related businesses that are open outside of normal business hours.

3.  ART STUDIO TIME MANAGEMENT MODEL 3:  ALTERNATE THE DAYS AND LET THE ART BREATHE

In our last example of making your time work for you and your art business, the six days of the week are alternated in functionality, leaving the seventh for everything to rest and breathe.  On Monday, one would market.  On Tuesday, one would paint.  Wednesday, market.  Thursday, paint.  Friday, market.  Saturday, paint.  Sunday, rest.  The theory here is that you have to both produce works, and actively promote yourself through your submissions, competition entries, web site maintenance, social media marketing, mailing out marketing packets and on and on and on.  Usually, the effort spent on these endeavors has to outweigh the time spent producing the works unless you’re fortunate enough to have a part or full-time marketing assistant.  And this is the artist’s bane, the need to step away from production.  The great part of this theory is that in leaving the art alone for a full 24-hours, when we return, we do so with fresh eyes.

Shauna Lee Lange Studios is a full-service arts advisory agency and design studio located in Port Charlotte, Southwest Florida.  The Studios are dedicated to helping women and girls live more creatively artful and authentic lives.  As a specialty, we work in design and decor of interior workspaces to help women create their own art place in the home. Artist Shauna Lee Lange exhibits nationally in paper and book arts in art journaling, visual diaries, and sketchbooks.  Her works center on personal geographies and women’s issues through the use of vintage ephemera, collage, and mixed media components.  Come on over and be a part of our international arts network Creative Art Consultants.  More art IS more love.