1. H ave Y our O wn W ork S pace
T he movie Ghost may have made it styles, the scent of the studios dif-
appear stimulating, but the reality of
sharing a creative workspace, even if
they work within the same modality,
is different. Not only do Bartosz and
Nishiki not share a workroom, but
their isolated studios are separate
from their living space. Their home is
a sanctuary for family and connect-
edness. They own a television, but
it is off to the corner and there are
plants in front of it.
Q: Who is the Messy Artist?
Nishiki: “He is. He paints quickly and
freely.” She reflects about how she
admires his style She is more careful,
contemplating her painting first, and
he often puts paint to canvas and di-
rectly transfers what is in his mind.
“Water medium is less forgiving. Ev-
ery stroke of the brush is precise and
deliberate.”
Working
with
different
painting
fer. Nishiki ruffles Bartosz’s hair and
says, “Sometimes he comes home
pickled,” referring to the fragrance of
distilled turpentine often associated
with oil paint. The water mediums,
including Sumi, that she uses have
a sweeter aroma to them, similar to
incense.
Bartosz: One who enters his studio is
greeted with a professional, clean ap-
pearance. Bartosz paints with heavy
impastos, by placing a large amount
of paint on the canvas and scraping
it across, leaving an evident texture.
He uses various squeegees and card-
board to move the paint around. “A
fellow artist in Rome advised that the
era of messy artists ended. The artist
can better view their work with white
walls and a clean floor.”
Neither Bartosz nor Nishiki is a messy
artist. Bartosz has paper taped under-
neath his work-in-progress paintings
to be removed upon completion, to
keep the pristine appearance of his
studio.
Q: Do You Work in Silence or with
Music?
Nishiki: She doesn’t always have a
choice. Her studio, located in a build-
ing where students also work, often
provides music in the space above
hers. “Part of what I do is repetitive,
and I enjoy playing music then.” All
she needs to create is privacy and a
closed door.
Bartosz: “In Rome I shared a ware-
house with 100 other artists in an
open factory. Some artists favored
music, others desired silence.” He
shares Nishiki’s need for an isolat-
ed workspace. Though he prefers to
work in silence, once in the zone he
can tune out noise. Another person in
the room is more distracting.
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