How to Manage a Studio

            In this post, I want to talk about setting up and managing a life drawing studio. I was a monitor for four years at the Art Students’ League of New York and Chelsea Classical Studio in NYC. So, what does that mean? It means that I was tasked with setting up easels before class, timing the poses, checking the poses, and assisting the students. I want to show you how to set up a studio for a small class or sketching group. This template works well and is relatively easy to set up.

          

  First day and general configuration.

Basic Setup where M represents Model Stand, H - Easels, o - Chairs, X - Seated Spots, [] - Crates, and /\ - Light Source 

             I should preface this by saying that this plan is for a four week continued pose. It’s significantly easier if you’re only doing this for one day. The basic things you’ll need are easels for standing spots, chairs for seated spots, a light source for the model, an assortment of draperies, and a model stand. The stand is not required, and it doesn’t even have to be a traditional platform, I’ve seen flat files substituted, but its basic purpose is to allow every student an unobstructed view of the model. 

              

              If you are working in a single room studio, I would suggest a hemispherical configuration, in which the stand is at the middle of the back wall, seated spots at the base, with easel spots skirting the outside. At each spot you’re going to put two chairs to hold palettes, brushes, paint boxes, etc, and for seated spots you can use milk crates or other chairs. The light is going to be the most difficult part to arrange. It should be above and in front of the model. In smaller schools this is generally just a clamp light on a pole.        

When all of that’s done, you set up your model. Cycle through a few poses and test out different backgrounds. When you arrive at something you like, tape the model. This can be where their chair sits, their body touches the stand, or other important points that tend to move. Now its time to call in the students. You can hand out numbers or call people alphabetically. If it’s a one day pose, you can do first come first serve. Mark the edges of the stand, the light, and the students’ spots.

Once you get through that, the hard work is finished. All you have to do is time the model and take breaks. I use a CDN kitchen timer and break it up into 20 minute poses with 5 minute breaks. For a three hour class, it divides nicely into four 20 minute poses, a 20 minute long break, and four more 20 minute poses. 

CDN Timer - Most Common Timer Among NY Monitors

And Thats It!

Make sure to mark the tape with the class name/date if you plan on continuing the pose, and take a photo of the setup if needed. A few more studio rules: no talking to the model during the pose, no correcting the pose, no cellphones (no photos), and no walking in front of the model. 

If anything is unclear, or if you have any questions please leave a comment below.