Lexington, KY - For an artist, even a 1940s era garage is a blank canvas waiting to be turned into something beautiful.
Kelly Brewer's artistic aspirations were recently augmented thanks to a complete overhaul of the old garage that sat on the property of the Holiday Road home she shares with her husband, Rob, and their three daughters. What started as a small, outdated two-car garage was turned into a graceful new structure with a much larger garage space on the first floor and a 650-square-foot second floor dedicated to Kelly's artistic pursuits.
"This was my Christmas present last year," Brewer smiled. "It's nice to have something here at the house. It's separate but it's still home, so I can still be here."
"What this represented was not only the investment in our home, but it's allowed Kelly to chase her dream and her passion in a place that was disconnected from the domestic world that we have with the kids, yet she still can have a set of eyes on the tower and be home when the kids get home, which means a lot," her husband added.
The couple said they had completed several remodels on their home, including an addition on the back that allowed for a first floor master suite for when they grew older.
"We see ourselves being here forever," Brewer said, adding that with the new studio she never wants to leave.
Brewer previously worked out of the Artist's Attic in Victorian Square, but said that the lack of convenience when raising three school-aged children proved problematic and stressful. Additionally, Rob was not entirely comfortable with his wife staying downtown by herself late at night to paint, so adding a home studio was a win for the whole family.
"I kind of got into this after my children got a little bit older," Brewer said of her painting. "I wanted something to do when they got older. And I always loved to paint and draw, but I had this mindset that you could either sit down and create a painting or you couldn't."
After years of developing her skill and learning from other artists locally and around the nation, she says she now cannot get enough of it.
And now, she doesn't have to be limited by as many time and location constraints. With construction beginning in July of 2011 under Mike Bailey and John McDonald of LCM Construction, the Brewers crafted a garage that flowed seamlessly from the design of their home, with a pale yellow siding color on the outside and dormer windows facing the street to give it a more authentic look.
"It's been a fun project, and LCM was great," Brewer said, noting the only challenge was the limited space to build on. "It's tight back here; it's not like we have a big backyard."
But upstairs in the studio, Brewer has a bird's-eye view of her home and plenty of elbow room. The studio has its own HVAC system and plumbing, a bathroom, kitchen counters and cabinets, as well as a sink for washing paintbrushes.
Enormous north facing windows provide soft, even light required to see well when painting without window glare.
"In the art world I'm still a baby, so a lot of my more seasoned friends suggested this window setup," she noted.
Ample closet space and a sitting area allow for a living room-like feel to the space. Brewer said she would love to someday host gatherings and other artists.
The studio consists of two main workspace areas, complete with rows of evenly spaced lighting from the ceiling. On the south wall is space for a mini gallery.
Brewer's studio flooring is reclaimed wood from an old roller skating rink in Indiana, and the character it brings matches the soft, impressionist style of her paintings.
"In our original plan, because I really am a really messy painter, we had no floor at all," Brewer said. "I was just going to have subfloor, and you know, I got up here and it was this beautiful space and I kind of wanted a floor. ... I got a bid that I could not afford, and then I called Gary Fletcher, who is this great guy that we used for the floors in our house."
And with the help of Jason Jenicky, another Lexington artist friend, Brewer landed on the neutral olive-gray wall color to warm up the space. Brewer's giant, custom-made easel sits next to the windows and has the ability to allow canvases of all sizes and shapes to sit securely upright above a spacious glass surface for mixing paint.
Her hard work with her paint brushes has paid off, as Brewer is featured in several galleries throughout Lexington, including Cross Gate Gallery. She has been featured at shows in Louisville and was recently accepted into a juried exhibition in California.