Designing a Life
AVM reading in her Oasis Gallery.
Every now and then, I find free time to sit in my gallery, and flip through Architectural Digest magazines.
I find them to be so inspiring, visually appealing, with great articles interviewing interesting individuals, designers and creatives.
Designing a home, whether that means enlisting an architect or an interior designer to help cultivate a space, entails becoming intentional about how one plans or desires to live each day of their lives in relationship with a given space.
Artwork by AVM Hawkins.
There is something so beautiful about the combination of desire and intention, coupled with setting a plan—a blueprint— of what one wants and then pooling resources and personnel to make it happen.
Manifestation in practice.
We manifest everyday but just not always consciously.
And there is something about flipping through these magazines on a relaxing autumn weekend with the windows open, allowing the fresh cool air in, that summons the belief that I can think about what I want and literally design a life that imbues it.
Call it hope, or inspiration—but this is what creating is all about—having an idea, the belief and impulse to do something about it and make it real.
In AD Magazine, March 2025 Issue, I stumbled across a quote that I just loved and wanted to hold on to—to ponder it more and relish in it.
“I have designed a house for the life I want to live, surrounded by things and people I love.”
I recently posted a short video of my home studio in the mist of splendor—midway into creating.
I had canvases stacked and standing up against every wall and corner, where I could see them.
I had papers, materials and paint on my 8ft x 8ft workhorse.
This is literally my favorite place.
The post made me think about my home studio and why I love it so much.
Having an art studio separate from one’s home is a great benefit.
It can serve as a place to meet potential new collectors, or host public events, and also helps maintain healthy boundaries and separation of work and personal life.
However, I’ve had many studios in the past, home and work studios, and I’ve always maintained my home studio, and enjoyed working there more than my external work studio.
Just eliminating the commute to the studio is a TREMENDOUS benefit.
The starting and stopping, setting up and taking down, get dressed, get into the car, driving through traffic, packing a lunch—all these small nuanced movements and decisions take a cumulative toil, that could have been energy that went into the work.
Whereas, at home, I can wake up, and enter the studio without any preparation. I can stop and leave the studio and enter back in whenever I desire.
I can pop out for a break and kiss my husband and son, talk to them and then pop back into my world.
My home studio is like a vortex—a portal where I can jump in and out into another world.
When I jump in, I am enveloped in my favorite place in the world, and can act on every impulse and idea.
I can then also pop back out and be with my favorite people in the world.
No travel. No traffic.
Doing what I love, with the people I love.
When I contemplate this, I realize that I’ve literally designed the life that I love.
I designed the life I always dreamt of.
Sometimes I forget this, because life still happens. There are still so many challenges that come through, that I must address, that consume my mind.
I’ve realized designing a life I love so much, came from real, tiny, unassuming decisions—decisions at the time that did not seem like they mattered; however, each tiny action led to a compounding effect that ultimately created a beautiful life filled with art, family, love and creativity.
All I did, was just say yes to the little things that made me happy.
Saying yes, to moments of joy.
Saying yes to being true and authentic to myself and what I truly wanted.
In many, many ways, saying yes to art and expressing my creativity has opened the door to creating a life that very much seemed impossible for me a decade ago.
If you are reading this, I hope this is an affirmation to do something you really enjoy, today; and treat yourself.
Wishing you a great weekend.