Freeze frame

Ja m e s Po w d i t c h The artist mixes media within his converted butcher shop.

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR SPACE? It’s a 100-yearold butcher shop in the heritage-listed Goodman’s building in Sydney’s Annandale. With 4.5 metre-high ceilings and plenty of natural light, it’s a beautiful space to work in. It has exquisite original tiled walls, moulded tin ceiling and terrazzo floor. In the front is my shop selling film memorabilia, vintage industrial furniture and objects, and my older work. WHAT APPEALED TO YOU ABOUT THE SPACE? Its location, size, history and street frontage. It’s a bit of a Tardis in that behind the main studio and shop it just keeps going. It’s ideal to store artwork and bigger materials. WHAT ARE YOUR WORKSPACE ESSENTIALS? My workbench for laying out and assembling work, cutting bench and saws, power tools, shelving and storage for my materials and a stereo. WHAT IS UNIQUE ABOUT YOUR WORKSPACE? Despite being bastardised in the past it’s still much as it would have been when built in 1910. It even has the angled glass shopfront all butchers seem to have had. DESCRIBE THE VIEW FROM YOUR STUDIO? Plenty of traffic and a pub across the road. DESCRIBE A TYPICAL DAY? I work at my kids’ primary school from 7.30 till 10am, make breakfast and cook the big meal for the afternoon. I buy coffee from George next door, open the shop then get into the studio. I teach art classes at the school twice a week otherwise I keep working in the studio till 6 or 7pm. DO YOU USE YOUR OFFICE TO ENTERTAIN CLIENTS? My gallery held a preview for my last show here. WHAT PROJECTS ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO? I am focusing on works for prizes, such as one for the Doug Moran National Portrait Prize and another for the Sydney Story Factory’s biennial fundraising art auction.