Where did you grow up? A small town no one has ever heard of, Blountville, TN What brought you to art? Hmmm, without sounding too trite, I can't really think of any time that I have been making art - art making has always been a part of my life. However, I can say I was lucky to have grown up with a very large extended family with grandmothers and a lot great aunts who encouraged me to draw, sew, cook - basically do anything creative. These women would often give me fabric, paper, buttons, and basic instruction. The rest is history. How often would you say you work in your studio? I am in my studio every day; however, the amount of time I am in the studio working can vary greatly. I teach at two area universities, so on my teaching days my studio time is limited perhaps an hour or so a day. When I am not teaching I try to put as much time as possible to being in the studio - which of course includes making as well as other art related tasks. Do you approach each artwork the same way in a systemized manner, or does it vary? Can you tell us about the way you begin working on one of your pieces? Take us through your process. My approach and process vary from piece to piece and project to project - so it's hard to pin-point. I must admit to being a sketchbook or perhaps the more correct term is a journal-artist, as my always my ideas begin in the moleskins I carry around. I say journal-artist as my planning and ideal formulation often deals more with language and words than not. What materials and tools do you use most? More and more I find myself using a combination of high and low tech tools. So my hands are always gravitating to my computer, scanner, and digital camera, as well as graphite, exacto knives, and lots and lots of PVA. Where do you get your inspiration? Inspiration is a very fluid thing, or so I think, and I find it in many places. Looking at art, noticing the world around me, reading, talking with friends or my students, and the occasional and ever so fleeting ah-ha moment. What are you working on lately? Presently I am finishing up a project working with x-ray images. Once that is finishing I have some animation projects as well as a drawing and printing project planned that uses found ledger paper. Who has visited you in the studio? Most of the people who have visited my studio are friends coming by for a visit of some sort - generally something that includes a meeting or my husband cooking! And I perhaps should not discount the apartment repair man, who always gives me his two cents worth when he comes to fix something. I have had a few true "studio visits" with curators recently which were very exciting. What is the best thing about your particular work space? I have two very large windows that just seems to make it a pleasing space. Since I am working in the second bedroom of the apartment my husband and I live in, I have been able to customize it in some ways to make it a much better work space. Shelves and a closet are a plus as is the old medical cabinet that somewhat resembles a refrigerator. What don't you like about your studio (if anything)? Honestly I often wish I were not working in my home, as it can help in generating a million reasons not to work in the studio as well as a million more interruptions. This negative though has made me very aware of any toxic or loud smelling art materials that I may have used without hesitation in the past. So if my work practices are safer, it is largely due to having to live with the materials. The space is also rather small, which is prohibitive. What would be the ideal studio situation for you? (Location, light, size, etc?) I think of seeing Ben Shan's studio in a documentary about him. His studio was a separate building literally in the back yard of his New Jersey house. In the documentary he was shown completing breakfast with his family and then walking across the yard into his studio for his work day. This proximity of home and studio, but separation of artistic workspace and home space seems wonderful. On a more practical level, I would like to have a much larger space with more tabletop surfaces to spread out on. Do you find enough time to make new work, plan future work, go to openings, promote yourself, earn a living, spend time with loved ones and otherwise have a life? (Or is the sleepless, chainsaw-juggling high-wire act just an unavoidable aspect of the artist experience?) Sometimes I have to balance both the chain-saw and a fire-torch while on the 20 foot high-wire, or at least it has felt that way! Balance is never easy and I always feel one thing or the other is not getting the full amount of attention that it should be getting. Luckily I make my income from teaching which allows for summer breaks, which help me re-focus and re-center. What do you want to know about the next studio artist on SpyMart? How does your studio practice effect the conceptual nature of your work? What was your worst studio adventure? (broken pipes, leaking roofs, bums, ghosts??) Visit Jennifer D. Anderson on the web: www.jenniferdanderson.com.