Ideas for Creating an Art Area in Your Home

Ideas for Creating an Art Area in Your Home

Last update: 26 December, 2018

Do you want an art area in your home? With a designated area for art in your home, you can paint, design, sculpt, or create without leaving your house. You can have a comfortable and independent area that you can decorate however you want. As an artist, it’s very important for you to have a space dedicated to creativity.

In this article, we’ll give you some ideas about having an art area at home.

The advantages of having an art area at home 

  1. Save more time. For many people, it’s impossible to have a dedicated workspace for art at home. Therefore, you’re forced to rent a space or work far away from home, sometimes much further than you’d like. By having this space in your home, you won’t have to waste your precious time traveling back and forth between work and home.
  2. Total availability. Because this space is in your home, you have access to it 24 hours a day. In addition, it’s a space just for you, so you don’t have to pay attention to other people’s schedules or any kind of scheduling changes. In this way, you’ll gain a lot of independence.
  3. Fewer expenses. If you have your own work space at home, you don’t have to pay for extra rent, which obviously saves a lot of money. Also, you won’t have to use transport, which will save you money as well.

This type of space is very common in loft-like homes. This makes sense because artists and students traditionally lived in loft apartments. Currently, in addition to lofts being used as homes, people also use them as shops, restaurants, art studios, and photo studios. As we can see, lofts serve multiple functions that are related to this idea of the art area that we discuss here.

art zone

Characteristics of an art area

When you’re first thinking about your art zone, you should think about what activity or discipline you’re going to focus on: painting, sculpture, sewing, writing, photography, design, architecture, etc. An art area is a space where your creativity will come to life.

It has become increasingly popular to have a space that is solely dedicated to creativity and design. An example of this is the essay titled “A room of your own,” written by Virginia Woolf as early as 1929. In the text, Woolf focuses on the importance of women’s writing. She reaches the conclusion that creators need a space of their own so that they can have economic and personal independence.

Let’s refocus back to the ideal characteristics of an art area. We can’t forget the importance of having natural light during the day with large, open windows. Obviously, you’ll need artificial lighting for when it gets dark outside.

As you begin to design your art area, make sure that you’re taking advantage of all the available space. In some cases, in small homes, you may have to give a room more than one use. For example, you can have an art area in your office or bedroom.

Stay tidy

It’s important that you keep everything very neat, and try not to mix environments as much as possible. If you’re going to dedicate yourself to painting, it’s very important that you have a good ventilation system. Therefore, if you’re a painter, we recommend that you choose an art area in a room with windows.

Finally, remember that these spaces should be comfortable areas that are conducive to creative thought. You’ll be spending a lot of your time in this space, and you’ll want to be as comfortable as possible.

How to furnish and decorate your art area

Here are some tips to get the perfect environment in your art zone.

  • Place an emphasis on storage spaces. To do this, you can install cabinets or shelves, preferably with a lot of depth to them so that they can fit as much as possible.
  • It’s essential to have a desk. We recommend that you have a good size desk so that you can fit the material you use the most, including your computer, magazines, and books. You can make your own desk by placing a piece of wood on trestle legs.
  • Use objects to keep organized. Consider using filing cabinets, jars, or boxes. The type of container you use will vary depending on what you need to store.
  • Make your own inspiration wall. In order to do this, all you need to do is hang up a large cork board. Place photos, illustrations, phrases, whatever gives you inspiration on your board. Use your inspiration wall as a place to generate ideas for your project. In addition, you can also have a blackboard or an easel that serve the same purpose.
  •  Install a mirror. This will be essential if you’re involved in fashion. Even if you’re not in the fashion industry, mirrors are highly recommended because they increase the room’s sense of spaciousness, especially if it’s small.
art area table

Obviously, you can adapt all these ideas to fit your needs and style. Pay attention to detail to make sure that you’re maximizing your space. Also remember that you can decorate by using plants, which will give your space a more natural touch.

Conclusion

We hope that these ideas help you to achieve your ideal art area. Remember that many great artists such as Paul Cezanne, Georgia O’Keeffe, Laurie Lipton, Pablo Picasso and designers like Massimo Dutti, Betto Garcia, or Stefania Borras have had their own work areas. Therefore, we encourage you to create your own workspace.

Finally, we want to emphasize the importance of having a good space where you can be creative and be yourself.

Art is not a way to make a living. It’s rather a very human way of making life more bearable. Practicing an art, good or bad, is a way to make the soul grow. 

-Kurt Vonnegut-