Welcome to the 300th installment — woohoo! — of A View From the Easel, a series in which artists reflect on their workspace. This week, artists bring a Parisian sensibility to Nebraska and return to their dream studio after two decades.Want to take part? Check out our submission guidelines and share a bit about your studio with us through this form! All mediums and workspaces are welcome, including your home studio.Laurie Victor Kay, Omaha, NebraskaHow long have you been working in this space?I’ve been in my studio, LVK Atelier, for about one year. I moved into the space shortly after my mom died from a very short battle with cancer. Moving here meant seismic change for me — leaving my family home, marriage, and longtime former studio. My mom worked with arts and accessibility. Her spirit is everywhere, and it is truly an amazing space. Every visitor feels the strong, positive, creative energy. When I moved in, I began imagining how I wanted my studio to feel, planning for months before starting construction. I was literally rebuilding myself while building my studio space. The first of many projects as a newly independent mid-career artist who had lost her mom and left her marriage to find herself.Describe an average day in your studio.My daily routine changes often. Constants: coffee. A long run, early-morning yoga, meditation — even a few times a week. Emails and Instagram. I read and journal. Each day is different because my practice is so varied. When I am making new work, I try to really let myself feel free. Music is so important to me. I like it loud — too loud for my neighbors. So many genres … I travel to time periods, places in the world, places in my mind with music. My Composition series is about music.How does the space affect your work?It is magical! The space is like a blank palette with which I can make anything. It is energetic in that my work is received and felt. I meditate often, balancing that with loud music. I feel so free here. During the first months in this space, I bought Yves Klein matte blue paint, and drew Buddhist quotes on the kitchen walls. I made a pact to be intentional about everything entering my space. I was leaving negative energy and needed a space to heal and grow. I wanted to use every corner in the space conceptually. I wanted a true artist’s home — welcoming, colorful, like a cabinet of curiosities; weird, filled with me.How do you interact with the environment outside your studio?I’m extremely involved with the art community in Omaha. This community is the reason I’ve stayed in this city. Omahans are down-to-earth and embrace bold ideas. The top three projects in my career were on the campus of the University of Nebraska Medical Center. Although I’ve moved further from the arts area, I’ve found the most important part of making art is feeling supported. My community is all over Omaha but also the world. I believe community is everywhere. Sometimes one close friend is one’s entire community. I want to continue to know my neighbors and support the arts organizations that support me.What do you love about your studio?One, I love feeling my mom’s presence. She was a mother to many beyond my family. She died too soon but left a legacy felt here. She worked with people who didn’t have access to art. Two, I love my trees. My home/studio has two massive oaks right through it. Three, I love that the studio is mine. I feel so free and independent now and don’t have to answer to anyone but myself. It was a long road to get here.What do you wish were different?I just wish people could be kinder to one another … you know? In terms of my studio, I wish it were in Paris or closer to the ocean so I could surf. I love my community, but my heart lives in Paris and other parts of France. I surfed in Biarritz recently and would love to be closer. Omaha is definitely a ways away from both. I’ve actually created a very Parisian-feeling space.What is your favorite local museum?My favorite museum is the Joslyn Art Museum, which just underwent a major renovation by Snøhetta architects in Sweden. The collection is fantastic — so varied. The renovation is stunning, and the Joslyn is yards away from the downtown public high school I once attended. I have a big place in my heart for the memory of walking to the museum during class, and I later did this with the Art Institute of Chicago when I was in school at SAIC.What is your favorite art material to work with?Good energy. I’m currently making prints, drawing, sculpting, using light, found objects, video, and my longtime love: photography. Don’t stop me or box me in. Performance art is coming soon, too.Susan Schwalb, Chelsea, ManhattanHow long have you been working in this space?Five years, but I subletted a space here from 1999 to 2000 and always dreamed of making it back. It was my dream studio, and it took a number of years to get into the building.Describe an average day in your studio.I always hope I will get here before noon, but other things get in the way. I am here until 7pm-ish unless I have a dinner date. I do work on a few pieces at the same time, right now a panel painting as well as a work on paper from the same series. I listen to NPR or my favorite CD. Right now it is Jerusalema by Master KG.How does the space affect your work?It is very uplifting. The light is fabulous, unlike my apartment, which is very dark.How do you interact with the environment outside your studio?It’s great to be in a studio building like this one in West Chelsea. I have friends and many fellow artists in the building and, of course, there is the vibrant gallery scene.What do you love about your studio?The beautiful light and the view of the city and the Hudson River.What do you wish were different?I wish I could live here. The building is for sale, and I hope it will remain an artist building.What is your favorite local museum?MoMA, the Met Museum, the Frick. NYC has such wonderful museums. It is hard to pick just one.What is your favorite art material to work with?Silverpoint, metalpoint, and acrylic. I even wrote a technique book with Tom Mazzullo: Silverpoint and Metalpoint Drawing: A Complete Guide to the Medium.