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Farmer Jack London
Jack worked with Luther Burbank to develop a cactus to feed livestock.
I don’t know why it’s taken me twenty years to pay homage to Jack London’s homestead in Sonoma, but the wait was more than worth it, and I feel like I’ve just scratched the surface of the agricultural side of the great writer. Having achieved literary stardom by the time he decided to settle down, London positioned his career as a populist writer/lecturer to support his agricultural experiments, most of which were way ahead of their time and in common practice today. He seems to have been most influenced by his travels to Asia, having seen firsthand the Chinese practice of terracing to conserve water. He raised horses and other livestock and collaborated with Luther Burbank to develop cacti as livestock feed, a failed experiment influenced by practices he witnessed in Hawaii while cruising the Pacific on board his ketch, the Snark. Continue Reading »
Goat Barn for the Edible Schoolyard
I designed my 118 SFÂ barn to accommodate three Oberhaslis goats in comfort.
I’ve been having a lot of fun designing a tiny barn to house three Oberhaslis goats for the Edible Schoolyard in Berkeley. The project is just a schematic concept thus far, but will not require much more design if I get the proportions about right. I love to design little buildings, the more utilitarian the better, especially when in support of urban agriculture. It’s been about 14 years since I designed and built the Tool Barn for the Edible Schoolyard, so I’m happy to have a chance to add a companion structure to the program. If the goat barn project is funded, I’ll most likely build it myself from trees felled and milled on our property over the summer. For now, the concept flows easily from my sharpened pencil on graph paper at 1/4″= 1′-0″ scale, my favorite way to begin any project.
The nototriously quiet Oberhaslis goat will need to be milked twice a day.
Maritime Micropolis
The Berkeley Marina is a seasonal, maritime micropolis.
Spending more and more time at the Berkeley Marina on board Suddenly has me thinking about the role ports and harbors have played in the development of a city’s character. With the salmon season in swing and the sailing season gearing up, the marina has been abuzz with activity, a floating city within the City.
The marina is a liminal place between urban neighborhoods and open water, combining elements of each in the comportment of its inhabitants. You feel a connection to the great cities of antiquity that must have grown around their natural harbors, San Francisco being the most recent to be discovered. Both Berkeley and San Francisco have developed over landfills that were recently water, houses built over the ghosts of neglected and abandoned hulls.
Abandoned ships dominated Yerba Buena Bay during the Gold Rush. (from a daguerreotype by William Shew)
Accidental Seascapes #1 & #2
Accidental Seascapes #1 and #2, 45″ x 11.5″ each, plywood, WD-40, cement-all.
Removing the forms from my Deep Deck mold, I was surprised and delighted to find two accidental seascapes emerge on the plywood sides that were in contact with the curing concrete. I sprayed the boards with WD-40 as a release agent before making a total of six successive pours, and the process and chemical reaction left a beautiful range of marks and colors, penetrating deep into the wood fibers.
Deep Deck Mold
The two-part concrete mold is released from the plywood form.
I’m building a hydraulic press to make cold-molded skateboard decks in anticipation of scaling up my production and capabilities. The first step is to build a form around a wooden ‘blank’ to support an investment of cast concrete. I took some time to make a dedicated, uncut ‘master’ deck that reflects the complex contours I’ve developed through years of prototyping. The two-part concrete mold will be supported by a steel armature that allows a five ton bottle jack to press wood veneers into shape. Lacking the funds to actually purchase the commercial equivalent, I’ve opted to build my own. I love when making an investment is just that, actually making an investment, and the inherent risk is born out in the skill of the investment-maker.
Hayride Revisited
My Hayride bench sits on top of a straw bale for outdoor events.
It’s been close to ten years since I designed and prototyped my Hayride bench concept. The first batch was commissioned for the Children’s Garden at Copia, a cultural and educational venue in Napa. I’ve since made small batches of the design, improving its construction and functionality with each iteration. Made from locally milled white oak, my latest model will be on display at showrooms in Sonoma and Healdsburg in anticipation of a production run this summer. I’m still working out Hayride’s manufacturing logistics and price points, but the design stacks for ease of packing and shipping, and I’m considering developing a folding version.