sketch of my original concept for a stair tower within a mock, old growth redwood trunk

I still think of the new cabin I’m designing as a treehouse, even though it will be more of a house on stilts nestled in a fairly dense, second growth redwood grove, making no attachment to any tree. My original idea was to camouflage the structure by making the stair tower resemble an old growth trunk, consisting of coopered redwood timbers housing a spiral stair (see above drawing). For practical and economic reasons, we’ve opted instead for an open, timber framed stair tower, more like a fire watch, with more emphasis on the the interior experience of the perched cabin itself.

I’ve enjoyed researching watch towers and houses on stilts, and appreciate my client’s focus and resolve to keep the program as simple as possible. It’s been a wonderful collaboration and we’re close to having a design ready to permit and build. I’m especially thankful to be working with Scott Hunter, Ph. D. P.E., whose design recommendations have added to the minimalist/maximalist ethos of the project.

a classic watch tower

staged climb to a watch tower, with ground shelter

a dwelling tower

nice windows on this hut

who doesn’t love a good beach shack?

Heidegger figured it all out in his famous writing hut

Tagged: california coast, deep craft, heidegger, hut, scott Constable, treehouse, vernacular architecture, watch tower

Taking a break under a giant bluegum eucalyptus on Whitaker Bluff

The eucalyptus was planted extensively throughout California by Australians during the Gold Rush for use as timber. They mistakenly thought the wood to be well suited for railroad ties, but the trees took differently to the soil and tended to grow in spirals, the grain twisting when cured.

“They went on to note that the promise of eucalyptus in California was based on the old virgin forests of Australia. This was a mistake as the young trees being harvested in California could not compare in quality to the centuries-old eucalyptus timber of Australia. It reacted differently to harvest. The older trees didn’t split or warp as the infant California crop did. There was a vast difference between the two, and this would doom the California eucalyptus industry.”

Santos, Robert L. (1997). “Seeds of Good or Seeds of Evil?”. The Eucalyptus of California. California State University.

Ene, Aili and I have been enjoying cycling the ranch roads West of Petaluma, where the eucalyptus were planted in lines along ridges and roadways as windbreak. I’ve used the wood in several projects and love its grain character, though its hardness and twisted growth patterns make it difficult to work. Several years ago I developed a chair design (see below) that capitalizes on the inherent attributes of the wood, which I found well-suited to sliding dovetail joints and narrow dimensions, which are less prone to twisting.

The Euc Chair (1995), which I developed after the Oakland Hills fire, when there was an abundance of eucalyptus cut for fire breaks.

Tagged: california flora, craft, deep craft, green design, woodworking, wowhaus

Lake Merritt, looking towards the Northeast

James and I completed the lenticular murals yesterday by clear-coating them with a  protective, anti-graffiti glaze. Touching every square inch of the surface of the images reminded me how much the tiles have been handled over the past eight months, how much care has gone into realizing a hand made structure at this scale. It seemed an appropriate finale to wash them over with a final clear wash, kind of like a baptism.

At the end of the day I took a final reconnaissance tour of Lake Merritt as Ene and I think about designing a system of watershed markers for the City of Oakland. Lake Merritt has been my quiet obsession during the past month’s installation, and I continue to be fascinated with its impact on the culture of the city and its environment.

mapping the old oaks

This time around I took note of as many old oak trees as I could see from the pathways, and began to make a map of their positions relative to the lake and closest intersecting roads. I also took notice of a surprising number of churches surrounding the lake, and thought how we could potentially activate their congregations to help learn about the watershed and its natural/cultural ecology. Maybe a church could ‘adopt’ a stream or an old tree..

The Cathedral of Christ the Light in Oakland, CA

Tagged: deep craft, estuary, lake merritt, Oakland, scott Constable, watershed ecology, wowhaus

The text and images on this post were sent by my friend John Miya, who lives near Chicago, IL. I look forward to posting more tree images and related stories sent by readers as I build an Archive of Old Trees:

“This is an old elm in my back yard. Its mentioned on a landscaping blueprint from 1917 as being 2′, which I assume was diameter.  I’ll try to scan the original blue print and forward it.  I think its safe to assume the tree is over 100 years old (house built 1897). Its been well trimmed over the years and is very healthy, although it is surrounded by paving in the middle of a driveway, with a 4 foot deep skirt of vinca and bittersweet. Lately we have taken the precaution to have it inoculated against Dutch Elm disease. Many of the features of the 1917 diagram still exist, although only a few trees from the orchard part of the yard which were removed by previous owners as apparently they were a “bee nuisance”.  Half of the original yard is now occupied by 3 houses built in the 1970s. Sorry I am too technically  unskilled to make it your required dpi and size. Crop as you will. Just don’t cut it down.  I think old trees in the middle of long developed land is a testament to the patient stewardship of landscape architecture. The view at ground level includes the basketball hoop (not on the tree, next to the tree on wheels) and a variety of balls, skateboards and other yard paraphernalia. happy spring.” jm

Tagged: deep craft, elm, landscape architecture, old tree, tree archive

I’ve always been drawn to old trees. We live on the edge of a redwood forest (Sequoia sempervirens), an ancient species that still dominates the coast of Northern California, despite relentless logging over the past 150 years. We have about 60 second growth redwood trees on our property, some already reaching a height exceeding 200 feet. Most of the trees around us are second growth, but I’ve heard of a few stands of old growth trees still in tact. The majority of these are inaccessible to the public, part of the exclusive Bohemian Grove in nearby Monte Rio. Rumors of their being recently logged have been confirmed in a recent expose by Alex Shoumatoff in Vanity Fair (May 2009).

charred hollow

I recently discovered the Grove of Old Trees, a serene stand of old growth Coast Redwood within biking distance of our compound. The Grove is open to the public, under the diligent stewardship of the non-profit group LandPaths, and has become one of my favorite destinations for a rejuvenating day trip.

I’d like to make a catalog of Old Trees on these pages, and invite readers to send images of any beauties in your neck of the woods. Over the coming months, I will build a database to upload and access images and information on the PARTICIPATE page of this site. Meanwhile, if you send images (saved at 72 dpi, 500 x 375 pixels) and related information to me at scott@deepcraft.org, I will post them on my weblog. Please include species, location and any relevant narrative. Thanks!

Tagged: Alex Shoumatoff, bohemian grove, deep craft, old growth, redwood, trees, vanity fair