What Makes a Great Studio?

David Tress is one of Britain's most successful and influential artists. His studio is in a ramshackle old building that he bought for a song. Judging by the video I saw on Youtube, it's cramped, cold, damp and not all that well lit. By contrast, watch videos about any successful American artist and you will see large, light, well-lit spaces with high ceilings and space enough to build a small house.In part this reflects the difference between the US and Britain - our little island is cramped, damp and not particularly well lit (and we love it for that!) -  but it also reflects the fact that there are as many different kinds of studios as there are artists.For some, their studio is a spare bedroom, for others it is simply a table set up in corner of one room. Some rent large spaces and work away from their homes, some only paint when the weather is nice enough to be outside.I am extremely fortunate that, when we returned to England from a long time away, we bought a house with room for me to spread myself out. At first I worked in a tiny office that the previous owner had converted from a boot room. The spacious room over the garage was reserved for guests. But as I moved from watercolour and ink into acrylics, and as my work got larger, the little space was no longer enough. So I moved over the garage, replaced the guest bed with a sofa bed, and bought an easel. Each time guests came, it was easy enough to clean up and I was careful not to make too much mess .... until I wasn't. As my work continued to become more expansive, there may have been some paint flinging and some of the walls and the floor may have become less pristine!So once again, I expanded, This time I looked at the space not as a guest room housing me temporarily but as my studio, to be arranged as I please. When guests come, they squeeze in around my art life rather than the other way around. (The studio in the photo is sadly not mine!)This shift has reflected a shift in my art making and in my attitude to myself.As my art has improved, I have gained confidence. And as I have gained confidence, I have become less likely to squeeze myself in around everyone and everything else.When I go into my studio, I feel an enormous shift. You must know this feeling ... it's as though I slough off all cares and problems like shrugging off a heavy coat. There is usually paint everywhere along with crumpled kitchen rolls and piles of bushes, palette knives, scrapers, and other tools. There are bits of collage paper scattering the floor and at least one scrunched-up sheet of bubble wrap. There's a hairdryer and an orbital sander. A few random sketches stuck on the walls. This is the one place in my house where I don't think about the decor - I don't need to. However it looks, it always, always makes me feel better.