Helping tidy, organize and decorate small workspaces and homes offices is our bread butter here at Unplggd. But that doesn't mean we don't appreciate the beauty occasionally inherent in cluttered, disorganized and densely packed work spaces, as revealed by the stunning photography of Joseph O. Holmes.
These spaces are the antithesis of what we propose and promote here on the site, but the Where's Waldo effect of the layered textures of places where everyday people get their work done is arguably inspiring in itself. Joseph has been kind enough to allow us to share the worlds where work is done without regard for those damn minimalist sensibilities (aka the "mess is mine and I know where everything is" system)!
We discovered Joe's photography via one our favourite online art sellers, 20x200, where his Custom Machinery series enchanted us with the mechanical menagerie of tools and accessories inside a machinist's shop, seemingly stuck in time. Many of these prints would look right at home in a dark hued home office or studio...
All photos used with permission: Joseph O. Holmes
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Comments (4)
Oh, I can understand the small workspace issues. I rent a small bedroom from my room mate and when I work (design and illustration) it's generally at a laptop at the living room coffee table, and my work space needs to be able to be cleaned up and moved out the way at a moments notice. It's pretty awful, and I'm absolutely dying to have an actual studio space one of these days.
I feel a panic attack coming on just looking at these pictures.
Finally! Rooms I can relate to. I make nests all around me, where ever I go. As a former draftsman, photographer, and now a writer, I know messy! (Actually, I kept my dark room scrupulously clean and tidy---to be otherwise was to court disaster, but digital photography has eliminated the dark room.)
The Times published a photo of Wm F. Buckley's huge home office and it looked like a hurricane had hit it. It was wonderful.
My husband is neat, tidy, methodically, and highly motivated. I'm the only thing he can't organize, but we've been married for over 40 years, so I guess he's learned to adapt.
My desk is only clean when the semester has ended and I haven't yet started a summer project. Although . . . I do have all of next week off and it would be nice to remember what the top of my drafting table and desk look like. Maybe I have a project for next week after all!