And Then What?

Government policy decisions of yesteryear had limited impact on the world –at large because of far fewer people and less potent technology.  Today we have both the population numbers and technical means to impose truly environment changing (even earth shaking) actions on our planet. 

We now live in an age where it is no longer appropriate for our leaders to make decisions and proposals whose consequences do not look beyond the next election and well into the future.  To ignore future ramifications is irresponsible.  In life as in the game of Chess, if you leave yourself no resources for the end of the game, you lose.  Are we expecting the second coming to occur before we reach our end game here on earth?  I require personal responsibility of myself and those around me and sometimes dream that government might do the same.  These dreams are usually pretty unpleasant as we seem to have all but lost the traditional approach of leading by example.

Two of today's biggest political issues are the economy (jobs) and the national debt.  Many solutions have been mentioned, but I don't recall any of them including a conclusion…an end game…a happy ending (?):

·                     More jobs – then what?  More production requires the use of more resources to supply more people – driving up costs and leading to the need for ever more jobs.  And then what?  Is there any end in sight?  Perhaps a better approach would be to reduce population to a point where there was a job for everyone (!).  Our civilization has no rules for the game of life…notice that we limit the individual use of water and at the same time build more dams to supply more water.  Why do we need to limit water use?  Is it so that we can squeeze more people on to the planet, build them more suburbs, sell them more stuff, and tax them to build more dams?

·                     If we zero out the national debt – then what?  Do we start all over again?  Swear supply off borrowing forever?  Do we just let future generations struggle with the whole mess?  Is the idea that it's OK to be head over heels in debt?  That's just not my inclination – I find myself repelled by too much dependency and attracted towards self-sufficiency.

Leadership

I've never been much of a follower and with the quality of leadership on display these days it's easy to see why.  I'm thinking about leadership in many forms – political, journalistic, professional, parental, …what is perplexing is that it seems that too many of those with the great responsibility are the ones lacking in what (for me at least) are essential qualities for notable leadership. There is good and bad in all of us and I don't expect all good from anyone, but the following key qualities are all too often either lacking or absent altogether:

Empathy – For others, for life, for the world around us.  The odds are very high that the person being denigrated is just about as intelligent, caring, thoughtful, and worthwhile as the accuser – and may even be a better cut of humanity to begin with (at least they're not doing the denigrating!). I find it presumptuous to assume others are somehow inferior.  Have you ever seen someone put down because they had a different viewpoint on things?  Or their right to free speech interrupted by protests?  Empathy can be applied to other life forms as well.  Have you ever seen a snake or other defenseless creature killed just because it was itself?  And it is still possible to feel empathy for the habitat and resources that help life to exist and flourish in the first place.  Have you ever seen someone throw trash on the ground or in the water?

Accountability –  There seems to be a shift away from personal responsibility and toward blaming others.  Perhaps this is the result of the continuous shift away from individualism and towards governing policies that inevitably tend to encourage the status quo by creating a kind of level playing field.  I think each of us needs to be accountable for our actions – no matter how severe the repercussions.  I am unappreciative of others pressuring the way I live, work, and think.

Vision  –  This is related to "class" as well as the notion of  "inclusion versus exclusion." I want to hear the pros and cons of all sides of issues with no distortion and no name calling whatsoever (name calling is usually a substitute for any meaningful analysis).  I don't want to be told how to think – I am capable of making my own judgments.  Most propositions are terribly short sighted and mired in short term personal gain rather than anticipating the long term greater good.  Teachers vote for education, minorities vote for each other, and union members vote the union endorsed line.  It appears to me that most people with quick black and white judgments usually lack depth of vision and are disappointingly superficial.  The world is too complex to lend itself to very many simple, clear cut solutions and policies of inclusion rather than exclusion can be valuable ways of viewing the world.  It's like trying to decide whether to play zone or man-to-man – even if the best choice is made initially, circumstances can change requiring adjustments, a complete tactical reversal, or a creative combination of tactics.

Interior Design

Our whole mindset is essentially based around what a project is and does rather than how it looks or appears.  Strong intentions almost always result in strong aesthetics and pretty much take care of themselves. Form and space are our primary considerations and how these are brought to life with natural light is the key to establishing a successful interior.

It is hard to imagine a serious architect that is not committed to the interior, the exterior, and every other aspect of his design.  The interior is not only the driving force behind nearly every building project – it is the very reason for the project's existence…in the words of Lao Tse "The reality of the glass is the space within."           

            "I have always taken to heart Ero Sarenin and Charles

            Eames maxim to always think about both the next larger

            and next smaller scale elements while designing. Accordingly,

            while designing a room, for example, one should  also think

            about how the collection of rooms combine to form the whole

            building as well as the furniture to be placed within the

            room." OGB

While we always orchestrate the interior finishes, lighting, details, and colors, we sometimes find ourselves working with interior designers, especially for furniture selection.  Designs for built-in and custom furniture are most often conceived by us in concert with the building and room design.

1 and 2

WINDHOVER: A concrete Rumford fireplace is positioned against a wall of exposed aniline dyed 2x10 framing and cement backer board. The open portions between the framing allow light from an entry skylight into the main living space (1).

LIEB RESIDENCE: Designed for baseball fans, some of the living room furniture reflects the sport via base-shaped end tables and a "Joe" chair. A Rumford fireplace faced with alternating bands of black granite and galvanized sheet metal ties the adjoining spaces together and provides a central anchorage (2).

3 and 4

PINS SUR MER: Establishing a skylit entry in the central portion of the house allows crucial backlighting for every room in the house on this often fog-bound site.Tree trunk columns and a chandelier assembled from industrial lighting components help provides a no nonsense ambiance (3).

OREGON COAST HOUSE: The symmetry of the interior responds to the symmetry of the views which are both up and down the coastline.The cast iron stove backs up to a viewing loft above and glass doors leading out to the bluff below (4).

Kitchens

One of the things that is interesting about designing a kitchen is that it is usually the heart and soul of the project – a role it has always had. As the kitchen goes, so often goes the rest of the house – this is where technology interfaces with ambiance, and the outcome, always important, can be quite striking.   

As with the rest of our design approach our kitchen designs are primarily concerned with their functional role in both the larger and smaller scheme of things (their relationship to other rooms and to the appliances, cookware, and utensils). The aesthetics evolve out of the kitchen's form and function, although with a watchful eye on the rest of the house as well.

(1 ) and (2)

BRUNSELL (Obie House):  The clients requested a kitchen that would not separate cooks from guests.  The tiled island is thought of as a de facto kitchen and includes the cooktop, grill, sink, and chopping block.  There is a separate bar with sink as well as adjacent walls containing pantry, small appliance counter, and major appliances

TIN ROOF:  Here the kitchen is open to the rest of the house and is built around a large stainless steel island.  A backup area holds appliances, walk-in pantry, sloped shelving, and additional counter space.  Dish storage is in an antique hutch set into a wall of exposed 2x10 framing.

(3) and (4)

HOWGUINNLAND:  The awkwardness of the existing room layout led to relocating a new kitchen (rotated 45°) within an oversized living space to create more comfortable room scales.  The kitchen is capped with a large pyramidal skylight which is in turn fitted with a light modulating cone of perforated sheet metal.  Soft light filters down through the holes to illuminate the kitchen while the rest reflects into adjacent rooms as backlighting (4).

SAN FRANCISCO REMODEL: The clients' indecision about open or closed kitchen cabinetry led to the embodiment of both – slatted faces of red birch (recalling the client's boyhood memories). The location at the back of an old Victorian necessitated exposing the exhaust duct which has subsequently been celebrated as a feature element (3).

Santa Rosa City Hall Council Chambers Show

Obie will have twenty-nine pen/brush and ink drawing giclées on exhibit from January 10 through March 1 at Santa Rosa City Hall.  A reception will be held on January 20 from 5 to 7 PM.  The Council Chambers are upstairs and the address is 100 Santa Rosa Avenue.  Please call (707) 543-3010 for viewing hours.  Below are the announcement, City Hall, and the artist's statement.

THE ARTIST

My life as an architect has clearly affected the way I view the world – and the art work I respond to.  I'm sure it is no accident that my drawings strive to evoke a sense of space as well as form.  Not just the positive and negative composition space on paper, but space imagined by the mind's eye as well. I've always been more interested in the unknown than that with which I am already familiar.  Accordingly, the compositions are suggestive and/or intriguing rather than literal and/or appealing to our sense of traditional beauty.

THE DRAWINGS

 

Having always been drawn to nature I find that biomorphic imagery comes quite readily. Each drawing begins with a thumbnail sketch which is enlarged and loosely transferred onto the final drawing surface.  The pen (or brush) and ink drawing can evolve considerably with technique playing an active roll in the process – I want the technique to be an expressive aspect of the work. Hopefully the finished drawing is a balance of order and chaos, a combination of the familiar and unfamiliar and, most importantly, an image that resonates with the viewer.

THE PRINTS

All drawings exhibited are limited edition giclées (archival inks on acid free papers) with medium and large images on 310 g/m² German etching paper.  Drawings are priced unmatted and unframed with mats and frames available at nominal cost.

OGB

Traditional Remodels

 

I have always liked doing remodels.  Two of the biggest reasons for this are 1) they often lead to solutions we might not have imagined if working with a clean slate and 2) when historical accuracy is called for they encourage a scrutiny of "the old ways" that is often both delightful and interesting.

Some examples of scrutinizing "the old ways" include:

Cedar Mansion/Sonoma:  This B&B had a number of great details that needed to be respected – some requiring improved technical proficiency. 

Brunsell/San Francisco:  This Victorian got a new face lift on the front as well as a new kitchen on the rear.

Larkin/St. Helena:  Already on the Historical Registry this remodel was completed with care and thoughtfulness for a very discerning client.

Old Milano Hotel/Gualala:  With historical accuracy we refurbished the old building and got it listed on the Historical Registry.

Some examples of solutions we probably wouldn't have imagined working with a new project include:

Himot/Tallahassee:  Awkward corners in the existing construction led to these zany bookshelves.

Bowman/Gualala:  Because there was no entry area into the house we created a symbolic entry out of a new front deck.

Barr/San Francisco: This Victorian suffered from lack of light so we added a glass roofed kitchen on the north side.

HowGuinnLand/Sebastopol: The existing house was so uncomely we just built a mask to hide its front facade.

Ecological Landscaping

A really big idea in my life and work is that of continuity – the connectedness of things versus the breaking up and fracturing that is the norm in today's manmade world.  I have always had an affinity for the California landscape and for me landscaping isn't about creating decorative foundation plantings – it's about connecting back to the larger landscape – perhaps for as far as the eye can see (?).  And it's not just about continuity of plants – although this is what we most often think of  – it's also about continuity of animal life.  It's trying to preserve the ecosystem – not to bit by bit break it down! Not every project allows this to happen, but for those that do we often find that our landscape consultant lacks genuine sympathy with our mindset and this often leads to our doing the landscape design ourselves.  A big plus with this approach is that the overall project concept is totally consistent – the landscape being integral with the building design.  We have had some wonderful successes working with landscape architects and designers – although usually with projects involving gardens and /or traditional landscape schemes.  The following images of our projects illustrate a few of our basic landscape ideas:

Berms and earth covered roofs can merge with the surrounding grade to create an obvious integration with the land.

If existing trees are too close to new construction they can often be saved and integrated into the final composition.

Building extensions like trellises can support exotic species and serve as a kind of mediator between man and nature.

When there is a desire for substantial numbers of non-native species I tend to incorporate them in ways that limit their range – such as planting them in planters or courtyards.