I get a little defensive when people hear about the place in France and assume that I am rich. It couldn’t be further from the truth. Being an artist does make it possible, though. In a prime example of perverse logic, as an artist I can just as easily not earn money here as I can not earn money in the studio.
The way it works is this: I work on the building during the day, and on my practice in the evening. I don’t have quite the same distractions, so I can concentrate. Until recently I haven’t been able to create finished works (although I have made what I think are some of my best works here) – I work on ideas which I then take back to the studio in England.
The place was bought as a ruin, with no water or electricity, so it was cheap. Again, because of money, I have done most of the work single-handed. I’m lucky in that either I already know how to do a lot of the work, or I have learnt on the job. I have just been slating the roof.
This is my pension, in effect. I don’t know what else artists are supposed to do.
There’s more here if anyone is interested: http://leblogging.blogspot.com
