Esoteric Survey

James Lovera birdhouse and Jens Quistgaard Rare Woods tray  Harrison McIntosh tile top table.  More about these Interpace Tiles here . Sven Petersen kinetic tabletop sculpture  

Harrison McIntosh, Dora De Larios, Tom Tramel and Rupert Deesse  Jack Boyd Design Line jacks and smalls Jens Quistgaard

 Harrison McIntosh house, designed by Claremont architect Fred McDowell. It was part of a tour by  Claremont Heritage . Ikebana arrangement by my friend Auralynn Nguyễn . In a McIntosh ceramic of course. In addition to the many McIntosh pieces, there are quite of few pieces by Sam Maloof.  Huge lantern by Harrison.    Soleri Bell = In the know . Karl Benjamin house, also by Fred McDowell. This and the McIntosh home are owned by the artist's children. They are doing a wonderful job preserving the legacy and so kind to open up their homes. Another  arrangement by  Auralynn Nguyễn .  This one too. Studies by Benjamin. I was pretty excited to see that Karl Benjamin was a Pacific Iron fan. Milo Baughman I couldn't figure this one out at first. I'm not sure about these pieces in particular but Karl traded a painting for some of his furniture. They made out on that deal.  I'm pretty sure it's this Pacific Iron daybed that has been reconfigured ...

Back at my favorite vista point on the way back from the Bay Area.  This time with a Robert Hanley for Modern Color Inc. floor vase. La Gardo Tackett Stan Bitters stool, Dean Santner jewelry boxes and a ceramic puzzle sculpture that opens up like a Russian doll. Victor Bisharat, Stan Hawk, Dora De Larios, Harrison McIntosh Irving Harper tray and some Euro stuff. Harvey Probber desk set and Carl Aubock Summerset Lounger

I went on a field trip to Scripps College, Claremont to see their amazing collection of post-war American ceramics. With me were  Eric Huff and Tom McMillin (yes the ceramicist). Kirk Delman, the Collections Manager and Interim Director at the Ruth Chandler Williamson Gallery at Scripps College gave us the tour.   Tom (left) is a legend in California ceramics and added so much to the experience. Not only did he know many of the artist in the collection, his technical knowledge of glazes and ceramics was a great insight to have. Kirk has been at Scripps for 37 years so he knows the collection better than anyone else. He also knew many of the artists personally and shared some great stories about them. This was a major craft geek experience for me and Eric.    The bulk of the Scripps ceramic collection came from Fred Marer. He was a math teacher at LA City College, so far from a rich guy. He built an amazing collection that began in 1954 when he went to an exhibit...