As many of you know, I’ve been building my new townhome and art studio in the Ketchum/Sun Valley, Idaho area since 2020.
At the same time, our family farmhouse in Southern Idaho has also been under construction. Right now, I’m in the middle of transitioning between the two art studios.
My lifestyle has been a bit confusing to those who follow my adventures online, so let me explain…
In 2019, I had just finished remodeling my Sun Valley, Idaho home and art studio. However, in 2020, I found a special piece of property along the river in Ketchum that I couldn’t pass up.
So, I made the tough decision to sell my newly remodeled home and start building again.
After selling my home, I’ve been commuting between two major construction projects while juggling painting for art exhibitions, teaching workshops, managing my business, tending the farm, and being an active grandma.
It’s been a busy time; to say the least!
Due to Covid, the construction process has taken much longer than expected, but I believe it will be worth the wait!
In the meantime, I’ve had a place to live at my newly completed studio apartment on my family’s farm.
I moved full-time to our family fruit farm, a peaceful retreat in the high desert along the Snake River in Southern Idaho.
Surrounded by acres of land, with both wild and farm animals, the farm has been a great source of inspiration.
On our farm, we have chickens, goats, and livestock guardian dogs to keep us all safe from our coyote neighbors and other predators.
Plus, we are the only commercial citrus growers in Idaho—how fun is that?!
To make commuting between the farm and Ketchum easier, I joined the vanlife trend, using my van for accommodations during my weekly visits to Ketchum.
While vanlife was fun for the first two years, I’ve since traded my van for a cute Tab 320 teardrop trailer—it’s much less maintenance! It’s also a great little studio on wheels when I’m traveling to plein air and other art events.
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Meanwhile, my new home and studio in Ketchum are slowly coming together. I’ve converted a bedroom and a bonus room into my creative space. Although the ceilings are only 9 feet high, I’ve installed a custom Tueller Wall Easel that allows me to work on small or very large canvases.
I’m excited to start creating bigger pieces once everything is settled.
The new studio feels like I’m in a treehouse, surrounded by cottonwoods,
with views of Baldy and the river just outside. It’s a serene retreat, even though it’s only a few blocks from town.
Balancing life between these two locations, with my grandchildren nearby in both, has been a blessing.
Both art studios may be on the smaller side, but they’re efficient, and I can’t wait to see how these different environments inspire my future work.
This post is just a quick update to let you know where I am on this journey. With the farmhouse and my townhome almost complete, I look forward to settling into these spaces and getting back to consistent painting, workshops and my online course creation.
Thank you for your patience and support during this transition! I’ll share more soon about how these two unique studios and environments shape my art—and maybe even share some photos as everything falls into place.
PS. I also want to acknowledge how incredibly grateful I am for the opportunities I’ve had, especially the farm, which I inherited with my siblings from our parents.
It’s been a unique experience balancing two creative spaces, but it hasn’t always been easy. I hope by sharing my journey—both the highs and the challenges—I can inspire other artists to embrace their paths, no matter the circumstances.
Each of us has a different story, and I’m excited to see how these two environments continue to shape my work moving forward.
P.S.S. If you’ve made it to the end of this post, thank you! As a token of my appreciation, I’m offering a 40% discount on any of my online art courses. Visit art.LoriMcNee.com and use the discount code BlogThankYou at checkout. This offer is valid for the first 20 readers!
JOIN ME for Plein Air Painting in the COTSWOLDS English countryside for an elegant workshop experience! More info: https://lorimcnee.com/events/the-cotswolds-plein-air-painting-workshop-with-lori-mcnee/
