Sal’s garden artist studio is just a short walk from her back door, across a neat lawn lined with cottage plants. Once inside, natural light fills the studio, revealing faint apparitions in the paintings on the walls, each at different stages of development.
A tiny printed sign leaning against the window humorously warns:
“Kids keep out…I’m painting your inheritance.”
On the left two double cupboards stretch along the wall with a glass top doubling as a painter’s palette dotted with oils. Amid the calm of her garden artist studio there’s an eerie sense that Sal’s subjects are not entirely of this world.
The Ghost Painter
In this space Sal is in her element as she loads her brush and flits from canvas to canvas.
“I work with one colour, layer up and swap from one to another. It’s about putting on and taking off the layers of paint. I don’t know when they will be finished – they have to arrive!”
Her paintings, textured and rich, always feature figures—often women—captured in fleeting moments, standing in doorways or hallways.
“She’s there but emerging from a background”, explains Sal as she works away at one piece.
So, when did Sal start painting ghostly figures?
Sal once worked as a housekeeper in a stately home, dedicating her spare time to painting. She drew inspiration from her imagination, creating artworks that depicted female servants from a bygone era as they went about their daily tasks.
Interestingly, it wasn’t until Sal exhibited some of her paintings that a local recognised one of the characters as a former servant from the very house where she had worked.
To this day, Sal continues to use this same creative process, allowing her figures to emerge from the canvas, often adorned in Edwardian hats, petticoats, or uniforms typical of life below stairs.
The Family Friendly Studio Pavilion
The tranquil surroundings of Sal’s garden artist studio – where the family’s dogs play on the lawn and blooms sway gently in the breeze – provide a peaceful backdrop that contrasts with the uncanny nature of her artwork.
The Studio Pavilion is a favourite with families offering extra room for hobbies or to work from home and fitting neatly parallel to a boundary fence.
Sal shares that she always wanted a garden artist studio of her own. Moreover, the adjacent storage shed helps keep the family’s belongings in order. The open area is an added bonus where the family and their friends can sit and eat together – made all the more special when husband Jason fires up the pizza oven!
Furthermore, Sal also gets to indulge her other passion – gardening – and still have her guests and family close to give a hand with the weeding!
How to Set Up Your Own Garden Artist Studio
Is it time to dust off your easel and create a space that nurtures your growth as an artist? Here’s how to set up your own garden artist studio:
Choose Your Wall Colour
Consider how your wall colour might influence your work. A versatile white will provide a neutral backdrop without skewing your colour palette, while dark walls can inspire moody, Rembrandt-style masterpieces.
Find the Right Light
Natural light is highly desirable, but it can shift throughout the day. Alternatively, LED lights are an excellent option. They’re energy-efficient, bright, and provide a cool light that won’t alter your colour perception.
Think About Storage
To maintain a productive and calming workspace, keeping clutter to a minimum is essential. Choose furniture that doubles as storage and consider shelving for reference books and houseplants. This will help keep the floor clear and facilitate easy movement throughout the space.
Health & Safety
If you have small children around, it’s crucial to store oils and acrylics—often containing toxic chemicals—out of reach. Therefore, a garden artist studio with a lockable door provides peace of mind, ensuring your supplies are safely secured.
