jordant

Things to get for my studio:

- better table.
- printer/scanner areas.
- books on several disciplines of interest, such like 3D, game design, video and business/entrepreneurship.
- Coffee machine.
- VideoGame station.
- Waste bin.
- Stationery.
- Stuff to hang up, objects.

Let’s picture my talent and professional ability as an untamed horse. Basically, it’s good to have it. He’s white and powerful, a wonderful stallion. He can do pretty much whatever he wants and go BEYOND where others stop. And win. He is a winner.

But as such a beautiful and proud horse, he needs to be tamed and that’s not close to easy.
In the last years, I think I have learned to tame the horse a little. He’s been resting for a while and now I’m slowly inviting him for a ride. He imemdiately wants to go fast. But I command him to go slower. Steady, but not at his whole capacity. It’d be a waste of energy.

Slowly, the horse learns discipline. With that, he is under control. He is tamed. He can win any race. He knows HOW to use his energy. He owns himself and uses his talent according to his free will. This exercise is called discipline and is not a result of fate, but his own decision. After all, he came in the world not to yeld, but to choose.

End of mystical talking. In practice:

For my professional life to work and grant me happiness, I first of all need clear objectives. After that, I need discipline in order to get things done. There are things that help me be spontaneusly disciplined, as I find that to be my true freedom. I have spent several months being “free” from objectives, timetables, or any restriction. That happened to be the worst and less productive time of my life. The most confusionary, and I felt into a cage which was my life itself. That wasn’t freedom.

With a clear professional objective, and a discipline to follow, I feel free. Timetables. Plans. Folders. I used to think I hated these things, that they would prevent my creativity. That isn’t true. Since I was a child I had the fixation of order. Maybe it’s just fixation, maybe it’s weird for some. But I know it makes me more productive and gives me the fun of working.

I’m not saying I should be an order maniac. I’m saying, little things like having my documents organized and not spread over my desktop, having a timetable, going to sleep and waking up at a certain hour, make me feel relaxed and in control of the big white horse. Otherwise, he runs and runs with no aim. And gets nowhere. And I despair as I lose him.

When I’m controlled, moderated, focused, then I can even be relaxed in chaos. It’s a delicate balance.

I want to make the living place different from the work space. I tend to obsess too much about my work, not enjoying doing it in the end and not giving space to real ideas. There is this obsessive type of thinking which I’ve seen in other clever people as well, but it really needs to be tamed if you ever want to do something good. Therefore, in order to have balance in my life, I need to separate the two things: professional space and relaxation, meditation, resting place. Of course I can have ideas for my work while watching TV or relaxing in a living space. But, still, my “studio” needs to be a separated space from, say, the confortable sofa where I’ll read books and drink tea. Also, I need to be far from computers several hours a day. As much as it is good to sit down and use programs for a while, it’s bad if it gets out of control, in my experience.

The studio space has got to have peculiar features. It is the place where I start my day, where I get busy, from where I develop new exciting ideas, feel the happiness of finishing a project, enjoy my professional life. This is for graphic, game and video design, and not for writing. For writing on my diary, or write other ideas, or an eventual story, I would choose to have a different spot with a slightly different atmosphere.

For the latter, I like a laptop over a big glass table. A table on which to place and view interior design and photography books is a main feature in my dream studio space. I would also like a small “lounge area” with sofa on which to read and drink, if I have space for that. If my studio is going to be my home as well, that would be the joint between home and studio space.

For the computer/design area, I want a separate table. Here, I would have my iMac or MacPro, connected to speakers. The table can well be of wood. Decoration here is relevant: right objects in the right places. Inspiring images, reminding me of positive things. Quotations, I guess. Souvenirs, gifts. And a panel on which to attach my designs and projects. Lighting is important, too: being at the computer with the right illumination, not too soft, not too strong. I guess a relevant item on my design area’s table would be the cappuccino or tea cup.

It’ll be an almost spiritual place where ideas flight and can be catched. A playful environment also, not too serious. This would boost creativity, good ideas, excitement.