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May 8, 2016 by tomdalzell

Field Trip – San Jose – Cevan Forristt – WOW again

 

It is Mother’s Day – a holiday – and so we will take a holiday field trip, a relatively new Quirky Berkeley tradition. Part 2 of the Marcia Donahue-led Quirky Berkeley Field Trip to San Jose was seeing the garden and home of Cevan Forristt.  He doesn’t live far from Ted Fullwood.

His is an unpretentious block.

Photo: Google Earth

Photo: Google Earth

Get the picture?

So, though, in the middle of this, is this:

345 S. 19th, San Jose

345 S. 19th, San Jose

Unexpected!  Not the picture that we just got. As William Tager said to Dan Rather in 1986, “What’s the frequency, Kenneth?”

Cevan Forristt

Cevan Forristt

This is the garden and home of Cevan (hard “C”) Forristt.

Screen Shot 2016-02-14 at 9.20.21 AM

“Landscape Designer” is one way to describe Cevan Forristt.  It is accurate – he has been doing this for a long time.  He designs incredible, high-end gardens.  He has a crew working for him all year.

On the other hand, it is a little misleading on account of he is so much more than anything that two words can describe.  Here is what Marcia Donahue says about Cevan: “I want to be as much like Cevan as I can.”  Need I say more?

Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016

The dragon is a naga, a serpent deity in Hindu and Buddhist mythology.  The fruit is Buddha’s hand, citrus medica, variety sarcodactylis, It is a citron variety, with the fruit segmented into fingers. It is orange. Forristt is all about yellow and orange and red.  Throughout the garden are small chili pepper plants and persimmon trees and red-orange-yellow foliage.

Let’s look at his garden and then come back to words:

Marcia Donahue Mala

Marcia Donahue mala draped on tree

Ted Fullwood sculpture

Ted Fullwood sculpture

Ted Fullwood sculpture

Ted Fullwood sculpture

Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016

Forristt made this shard planter.  Marcia Donahue has one in her Berkeley garden.

Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016

Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016

Candy the cat!

Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016

Forristt chard planter

Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016

Forristt panels and chard planters

 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016

Oil burners

Oil burners

Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016

Made by Forristt

Made by Forristt

Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016

Jesus!  Buddha! My goodness!

Forklift required.  Amazing.

At first it was all just a little overwhelming.  I then embraced the Ken Kesey and Merry Prankster “go with the flow” ethos and just calmed down and, well, went with the flow. Lots of stone.  Orange and red and  yellow flowers and fruit and peppers. Forristt’s art.  Buddhist iconography.  Lots of landscape architecture

Where the first Asian influence?

Forristt grew up in Menlo Park.  In 4th grade, he got hip to Asian culture.  Japanese neighbors, the Takioko’s, let the neighborhood children paint on the walls.  When some child’s genius artwork emerged, mother Takioko would shout STOP and work on recreating what they had created.

Funny how a little thing when you are 9 years old launches your life.

Forristt travels to Asia often.  All over.  He buys things and brings them home.  He loves Asia and her culture and art.

His garden is part and parcel of his landscape design business.  He doesn’t create plans for his gardens, just a profile.  If he feels that one of his pieces belongs in the garden that he is creating, he gifts it – to the garden, not the people.

At the rear of the garden is a guest house / studio / tea house.  Hang on – it’s really something.

Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016

The lights behind the icons are called haloes.

alamy.com BY1HJJ

alamy.com BY1HJJ

They are Burmese.  Love them!  Forristt brought them from Burma.

Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016

Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016  Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016

What can possibly top this?

Of course I know the answer.  Forristt’s house.

Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016

Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016 Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016

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Halo!

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Quirky Berkeley 02-10-2016

My mother (happy Mother’s Day – it’s been 18 years – you are remembered!) first saw the Santa Clara Valley in the early 1940s when she was getting her Master’s degree at Mills College.

Prune_Orchard_near_Santa_Clara,_California_(3655751146)

This postcard is more or less what she described.  Paradise.

Now, not so much.  We of the Real Bay Area can be a little snooty about San Jose.  A big city????  Preposterous.

I have an evolving opinion of San Jose.

IMG_6874

In 2015, my partner Catherine MacNeal – Happy Mother’s Day! – was in the final production of San Jose Rep, “The Big Meal” by Dan LeFranc.  My several trips there with Charlotte and Rosalie to see the play got me thinking.

And now Cevan Forristt and Ted Fullwood.  And seeing the ceramic workshop at San Jose State.

My opinion of San Jose is trending up.

Forristt – holy mackerel.  I can see why Marcia Donahue has such a high opinion of him and his work.  Holy mackerel.

I showed the photos to my friend.   “We GOTTA go here!”

Photo: http://www.roadarch.com/eateries/casno.html

Photo: http://www.roadarch.com/eateries/casno.html

“We could visit Cevan and then maybe lunch at the Falafel Drive-In?”  Sure.  How would he sum up the photos?

IMG_3677-225x300

 

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4 Responses to Field Trip – San Jose – Cevan Forristt – WOW again

  1. doug heine says:
    May 8, 2016 at 9:06 pm

    Man ! either we have to import him to Berkeley or perhaps I can a second home in San Jose, I agree, I’m getting rid of my snooty attitude.

    Reply
    • will says:
      June 10, 2016 at 1:43 am

      I looked up the definition of Shangri-La! ” An idyllic hideaway.” That’s it. I found it! Also: “a remote beautiful imaginary place where life approaches perfection.”

      Reply
  2. holy is the says:
    June 16, 2016 at 7:05 am

    Rahner on Grace

    Reply
    • tomdalzell says:
      June 16, 2016 at 12:02 pm

      I am intrigued. Do you have anything more to say about Rahner on Grace or do we have to do the work?

      Reply

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