Grain Bin Studio

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Issue 46

The Food Issue

Make a meal to die for
Make wine crate cabinets
Learn to screen print

Grain Bin Studio

by Mimi Zeiger

Photos by the John Michael Kohler Arts Center

Richard Saxton jams out in a grain bin turned recording studio and bandshell.

Was: Grain Bin
Now: Recording Studio/Bandshell
Who: Richard Saxton
Day Job: Artist and Professor at University of Colorado at Boulder
Hometown: Boulder, CO
Maker of: M.I.K.E. (Music Integrated Kiosk Environment)
Square Footage: 113 square feet
Site: municipalworkshop.org

When M.I.K.E. touches down, music happens. M.I.K.E., which stands for Music Integrated Kiosk Environment, is a digital recording studio that transforms into a performance bandshell and is the brainchild of artists Richard Saxton of the municipalWORKSHOP, a loose and creative collective of public artists from across the country, and Stuart Hyatt of TEAM Records. Commissioned by the John Michael Kohler Arts Center in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, every aspect of the quirky structure is designed to get people to collaborate. Local at-risk teens and students from a nearby technical college welded, sawed, and glued M.I.K.E. together. Then the stage was set for neighborhood concerts. Participants in the art center’s Building the Band program were the first to rock it out.

Saxton grew up in the Midwest and has a fascination with pre-fab structures and farm architecture. M.I.K.E. is assembled from prefabricated ribs that are used in grain bin construction. Salvaged camper and RV parts give the structure its distinctly spacecraft charm. And sometimes a window on the world is just what’s needed to make a small room feel bigger. You may not have a grain bin handy, but a garden shed can be just as easily hacked into a studio, office, or playroom for the kids.

M.I.K.E. Shed-Style Windows

Scour RV and camper scrap yards for windows. Richard found old camper doors and windows from RV Surplus in Elkhart, Indiana. (Elkhart holds the dubious honor of “RV Capital of the World” because so many manufacturers are in the area.)
To build each window, place salvaged camper window in the center of a 24×24-inch plywood sheet. Trace outline, then cut opening.
Use rubber gasketing to fit window in place.
Install your windows in a shed (or even a wall or fence). Frame 24×24-inch window openings with 1×6 OR 1X4?? lumber, leaving a 4-6-inch gap between frames. Screw windows flush to the outside edge. This will give you a nice sill on the inside to hold guitar picks.

Bonus: Full Structure Instructions for M.I.K.E. Shed

Purchase a galvanized steel shed with a steel floor frame durable enough to stand up to hacking. Choose one with swinging barn doors to maximize backyard performance possibilities.
Scour RV and camper scrap yards for windows. Richard found old camper doors and windows from RV Surplus in Elkhart, Indiana. (Elkhart holds the dubious honor of “RV Capital of the World” because so many manufacturers are in the area.)
Before you assemble your shed, be sure to cut openings for the windows. The easiest way to do this is to cut a swath out of the whole wall panel. Use a rotary saw equipped with a disk to cut metal (your local hardware store can advise on the blade). Be safe. When working with galvanized metal, wear a respirator and safety glasses. Handle the cut edges of the metal with gloves; they’ll be extremely sharp.
Assemble shed according to manufacturer instructions. You’ll have a gap where you cut your window openings.
To build each window, place a salvaged camper window in the center of a 24×24-inch plywood sheet. Trace outline, then cut opening. Use rubber gasketing to fit window in place.
Frame 24×24-inch window openings with 1×6 lumber, leaving a 4-6 inch gap between frames. Install windows flush to the outside edge. This will give you a nice sill on the inside to hold guitar picks.
Use the metal siding you cut out to fill in the gaps between each window and between the windows and the corner.
Finish the inside of your shed/recording studio with foam-backed carpet tiles. Mix up the colors for maximum op art.