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Meet Zushka Biros of Red Bench Studios in Jerome

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Zushka Biros.

Zushka, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I was living in Sedona, making websites for a living from my home. One afternoon, I received an email from an artist in Jerome needing a website. Someone gave her my info, so I took a drive up the mountain to meet her. During the time I was there, I noticed that the studio next door to hers was for rent. I took a few photos of the empty studio with my phone, went back home to Sedona and put the photos on my Vision Board.

I started manifesting my future. After securing the studio in November of 2016, I moved in. All I had was a desk, a chair and my computer. The space was vast and empty, consisting of 525 square feet, 15′ high ceiling a wall full of huge tall windows overlooking the valley, on the top floor of the building. It was an old classroom, with two long blackboards on the walls, old hardwood floors, original door and woodwork and windows.

The name Red Bench came to me in a dream years ago. I found it in an old journal and decided quickly to name it “Red Bench Studio,” still unsure of what I was going to create in it. Being a model, I noticed that the natural light streaming through the wall of windows would be perfect for photoshoots. It didn’t take long for the photographers I knew to make their way up to Jerome, from Scottsdale, Phoenix, Tempe, Flagstaff, Sedona, and pretty much all over Arizona.

The monthly Photo Workshops began in March of 2017. Since that time, other photo events, including First Saturday Art & Music Shows and Art Classes, took over. The studio calendar filled up quickly, with a variety of events happening most days of the week. Photographers and Artists are able to rent the studio by the hour or by the day for their own private sessions as well. With so much activity going on, Red Bench outgrew the room. In March of 2020, I was able to rent another studio in the building, sharing it with an artist. Soon, Red Bench became two entities – one for photography and one for art.

I am busy with scheduling, arranging classes, workshops and events, and I still a model for photographers and artists alike. But none of this came overnight. It took a lot of support from family and friends, a lot of research and educating myself, and a lot of perseverance and tenacity. I was, and still am, a “one-woman-show,” which means I not only own the business, but I am the custodian, the bookkeeper, the setup and take-down person, the scheduler, the marketing and promoting specialist, and everything else it takes to make it all successful. I love what I do, all of it. I have fun with it all, and I don’t see myself slowing down anytime soon. Red Bench Studio(s) is my passion.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Financing was the first struggle. Whatever I could do for free, I did, which meant learning how to promote and market my business. It’s great to open up a photography and art studio, but getting the word out and finding clients was a whole other ballgame. Costs were low, but now I was self-employed with no other source of income, except for the modeling gigs that were far and few between. Supportive friends and family helped me during my first year. Nothing went smooth for Red Bench. It was an uphill climb. And if you know anything about Jerome, it’s all uphill. Slowly, with consistency and keeping to my business plan, the studio’s reputation gained momentum.

There were plenty of times I thought I should give it up and go get a job. But every time I felt that way, something would happen that caused me to tough it out. Even when I became homeless, after the house I was renting for years in Sedona was sold and turned into an Air BnB. I was fortunate enough to be able to house-sit and even spent a night or two on the studio couch.

Over time, my new way of life (being a business owner, a photographer, an artist, an event planner) became my new norm. Going backward to the way of life I had before was no longer an option; it felt foreign. I guess the biggest struggle for me was not just the intricacies of owning and running a business but allowing myself to feel okay with this new way of life. It wasn’t easy for me, in the beginning, to create my own schedule because I was so accustomed to working a Monday through Friday, 9 – 5 jobs for others. Now, I could work when I wanted to. Late-night hours were the best creative times for me. Doing hard work was fun, too, because it was for me, not anyone else.

I am now into my 4th year with Red Bench Studio(s) and I am thrilled to say, it is finally sustainable and supporting itself. I love the work, I love the room(s), and I love my way of life. The best part of it all has been my own personal growth. This journey has made me strong.

So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Red Bench Studios story. Tell us more about your work.
Red Bench Studio is a photography studio and an art classroom. It is not the typical photo studio, instead, it is a place where photographers learn from some of the best in the state. Monthly photography workshops are conducted by instructors who are photographers themselves. Each month a new model is chosen by the instructor, a theme is created, and the workshop is then advertised to photographers of any skill level. Photographers can also rent the studio by the hour or the day for their own private photo sessions. I, too, am a photographer and create my own form of art using paint and photography.

The art classroom started in January of 2018, when a college art teacher, who I modeled for, saw the natural light streaming through the wall of huge windows – perfect lighting for life drawing classes. Weekly art sessions turned into monthly art classes, in addition to the weekly sessions. Soon, the studio was taken over by artists. I specialize in photography and art education. I provide services, not necessarily products. Red Bench Studio(s) is known for having an excellent, consistent reputation in professional photography workshops, classes and events, as well as life drawing sessions and classes with a different model every week, attracting artists from all over the Verde Valley.

I created the Red Bench Camera Club a year and a half ago. It started small and slowly gained members from the Phoenix area, Northern Arizona, and as far away as Tucson. This is an area that made me proud because my members sought me out. They had been following Red Bench Studio(s) on social media, subscribed to my monthly newsletter, and attended open houses for the public to see what I offer. I enjoy connecting with my members, and those in the photography field, making everything I provide for them fun and exciting.

A combination of things sets me apart from others. One being the studio itself. It is a classroom in a historic old high school on the side of a mountain, in the mining town of Jerome, Arizona. The town has a wild history, the building that my studios are located in is unique, in that it is authentic and preserved the way it was when it was built in 1923.

The other thing that sets me apart from others is my personal attention to every detail that is put into each and every workshop, class, event, and my personal relationships with the models, photographers, artists, vendors, newspaper editors, gallery owners, etc. I give 100% of myself to everything I do with Red Bench Studio(s).

Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
I believe we all create our own luck. We do this by manifesting what we really want out of life and with business. How I do, that is simple. I focus on what I want, create a Vision Board, meditate about it, learn all I can about it, make a plan and put it into action. Successes and failures are personal and professional growth, not necessarily good or bad luck.

For example, I could say, “Becoming homeless was bad luck,” but it taught me to be resilient and flexible. It was not bad luck. It was the Universe shifting things in my life that would cause me to move. Sometimes, things are drastic, like becoming homeless, to uproot us and put us somewhere else. Becoming homeless pushed me out of Sedona, and up the mountain to Jerome. I could just as easily say, “Becoming homeless was good luck.”

Pricing:

  • Red Bench Camera Club Membership: $50 per year
  • Monthly Photography Workshops: Members, $75; Non-Members, $130
  • Studio Rentals: $62 per hour, discounts for booking a 1/2 day or full-day
  • Monthly Art Classes: $108 for 4 classes
  • Weekly Art Sessions: $15 (plus tips for models), does not include supplies

Contact Info:

Image Credit:
Charles Parks Photography

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