Purposefully Re-purposed
Josh Proctor's Studio at Milo Arts is rocking both 'cycles and recycles
By David Lewis |
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Josh. Unshorn, 34 years old, baseball hat, cat, motorcycle - an artist. Milo ... Ah, Milo. Six and a half years.
"I thought the space was cool; I fell in love with it," he says of Milo Arts, the turn-of-the-century school that has become a local version of the famed Chelsea Hotel, housing many of the quirkiest and most talented creatives Columbus has ever produced.
"It was a live-work space that was purely functional for me," says Proctor as we lounge on his sofa. He's an accomplished interior designer/artist/entrepreneur who, with his business partner, Chris James, hand-carved the enormous Roadrunner advertisement bursting from its building downtown at Main and Fourth Streets. His gorgeous 1,000-square-foot studio was renovated from an old classroom, now resplendent with a bedroom-loft accessible by spiral staircase and flawless hardwood floors.
"I try to define little spaces, without restricting them," he says of his use of space, which imparts small areas of focus within the larger, open layout of the studio. "Yeah, you know ... the feng shui thing," he says, somewhat sheepishly. "I try to have a nice flow to my studio, although it is difficult with two motorcycles parked here."
Photo: Christopher Atwood
"But those are my favorite pieces of art," he notes, looking with pride at the two racing bikes, a 1990 customized Honda VFR, modeled with a nod to Tetsuo's bike from the anime classic Akira, and a 1976 XS 360, re-created along vintage cafe racer lines.
"It's the wave of the future, man," he says, watching a kitty loafing out on the saddle. "It gets like 50 miles to the gallon."
The room is hung all over with both Proctor's original works of art, as well as works from other local artists, such as his business partner Chris James, and burgeoning local artist, Christopher Cropper.
Guitars and amplifiers anchor a music area, while a mid-century Danish entertainment stand holds his flat-screen television, low and long and lean. The main living area is held to the floor by a custom hand-made rug made by fellow Miloan, Pat Durkin.
The decor is undoubtedly recycled rock-eclectic, but with an Asian-flavored clean-line look that characterizes the entire space, from intelligent interior blocking, to the vintage paper screens lining one wall, redeployed from a closing Chinese restaurant.
"It's a wonderful way to recycle, taking an old piece of junk and making it into something," he says with a laugh.
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Originally Published: December 1, 2009
