Studio Reverie

reverie:  a state of being pleasantly lost in one's thoughts; a daydream.

     I am a daydreamer. As a little girl in school I remember teachers gently returning my attention back to the classroom when I had drifted off thinking of all the things I would one day do or be when I grew up. All of those daydreams were in some way related to a creative endeavor. I dreamed of being a drummer in my own band which I would call the "Starlights"; I dreamed of being an actress, moving to New York and writing my own plays; I dreamed of being an architect, designing houses for myself and my friends; I dreamed I would write the next great novel. My parents supported these lofty daydreams throughout my childhood. One thing that I didn't daydream about being was a visual artist….from a very early age I was absolutely confident that I WAS an artist.....period.

 Studio Reverie began with a vision in 1998 when my own young family and I moved into a Victorian home built in 1894. Behind this home that my husband and I have lovingly restored over the years is a long building which had served for its previous owners as a woodworking shop/antiques showroom/garage. The minute we walked into this building, I claimed the central showroom space as the home of my future studio. I envisioned an area in which I'd escape from my "real" life as a high school art teacher, mom, and wife to create to my heart's content. I also envisioned it as a space where my musician son and artist daughter could develop their talents. Through the years this space served those purposes but also acted as a motorcycle repair space for my husband, a party spot for my children's birthday & graduation celebrations, a practice studio for my son's 3 bands, and living quarters for my son and his friends between apartment rentals. Needless to say, my own creative visions were many times placed on the proverbial back burner. However I held fast to my vision, knowing that someday the space would be mine exclusively and christening it in my mind as Studio Reverie, a somewhat tongue-in-cheek reference to my daydream of having my own studio....eventually.

Now, having retired from teaching and experiencing the bittersweet feel of an empty nest, I have made my studio vision a reality. Although Studio Reverie is a physical space, it is also a creative concept. Through the process of renovating my studio and leading private art workshops and parties, I’ve realized that the idea of “Studio Reverie” is not meant to be confined to brick & mortar space. My goal is to encourage every person who attends one of my workshops to see whatever space they are creating in, be it my studio, a coffee shop, a gift store, a community center, or their own home, as a studio where their creative daydreams can become reality.

Lisa Watz

wife, mom, artist, teacher, daydreamer