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Monthly Archives: January 2014

Mr. Fujii

28 Tuesday Jan 2014

Posted by Lisa Bruce in Inspiring People

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

M. Moss Fujii, Teaching

Moss Fujii

M. Moss Fujii

What a memorable man my sixth grade teacher was.

Born in Tacoma in 1929 he lived an extremely full life and I’m lucky to have shared a year of it with him.  I’m writing about him now because he passed away this month.

After six years (kindergarten included), of having a school of only female teachers, arrived Mr. Fujii.  Now I realize he was only 35 years old when he took us under his wing to teach us about a world we had not been aware of.

From his funeral notice I learned that after Pearl Harbor he and his family were incarcerated by our country in concentration camps.  Four different ones.  In the concentration camps there was nothing to do so he and his friends danced. Apparently he became quite good dancing to the Andrews Sisters music!  After the war his family lived in a railway car until they could get settled properly again.  He never spoke of any of this and he never expressed bitterness in his talks about life, but always gratitude.

He did mention his experiences in the South and not being quite sure which drinking fountain or restroom to use as he was neither White nor Negro, as the signs read.  He taught us to honor human beings, no matter their color or circumstances.  We sang “We Shall Overcome” for our graduation and often sang songs of this nature and time period in class.

He had a love of animals, especially birds, and taught us to recognize bird calls. We would be quizzed on the bird songs of many birds that were recorded on a tape recorder.  I loved that he found this important and, even though I had grown up a bird lover, he made me much more aware.

If we found a dead bird in the school yard or a student’s small hamster died, we could bring it to Mr. Fujii and he’d stuff it for us.  Most unusual!  I always imagined his doing this in the classroom while we were at lunch but I know now that must have been impossible.

Up until Mr. Fujii, our teachers in grammar school had all been excellent and well loved but were trained in another day, with another style.  Mr. Fuji came on the scene with a modern way of teaching and treated us like young adults.

He wanted us to be aware of everything in life so we could make informed decisions and not just accept things.  We were in his class during the election of Lyndon B. Johnson when he ran against Goldwater.  Mr. Fujii had us do debates. We picked a name or issue out of a box and were to study that side thoroughly and then debate it the next week.  I’ve never been much of a debater so this was challenging for me but I loved being opened up to this world of politics and issues and have had an interest ever since.

Before coming to John Muir Elementary School Mr. Fujii had served in the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War as a First Lt. Radar Observer-Navigator and survived two plane crashes!

He received a Bachelor’s Degree and three Master’s Degrees.  These were in education, child psychology and physical education.   He was a teacher, school principal and child psychologist.

As he was our teacher we knew very little about his private life or past but I was delighted to meet a family recently who had known Mr. Fujii nearly all their lives and I was lucky to learn more about him through them.  The kids (my age) said they learned  how to camp, fly fish, sail, play tennis and snow ski from him on the many vacations the two families shared together.    Mr. Fujii was married for fifty years and had two daughters.

He was always wanting to expose us to wonderful things and the story behind how things were done so at Christmas time, as an art project, he took us back to the Renaissance by having us mix-up egg tempura paints and paint the hallway windows to look like stained glass windows.  It was lots of fun and most unusual to be out of the classroom and doing such a project in those days.  We all thought the windows looked marvelous!   When we returned from our two week Christmas vacation  we entered the school and found it smelling of rotten eggs and there was the janitor, Mr. Melson, unhappily washing all the windows of the very hard to remove egg tempura!

His memorial was in a Buddhist church in Union City.  Every seat was taken and there were people standing.  The church was colorful and smelled of incense. The service began with tolling of bells, then chanting, then an incense offering when everyone lined up to offer a bit of incense at the alter.  There was such a crowd this part of the ceremony took half an hour.

Then there was the eulogy by a long time friend and words from one daughter. This was touching and informative.   I learned how he continued to reinvent himself.  In the ’60’s there was a big pot bust, with many police cars, just a few doors down from their home.  He decided Berkeley was not the place to raise their daughters so the family moved to Aspen, Colorado.  He had the family learn Transandental Meditation and EST and the children went to school with Hunter Thompson’s children!

The next move was to Mill Valley.  Then again to the East Bay.

He was always encouraging and wanted to make life better for those around him.  He saw the positive side of life, took risks and made the best of things.  In fact, one story about him was that when he was young he tied his shoes to barrel staves to ski!  Always ingenious!

He learned to play the ukelele and fell in love with all that was Hawaiian (he had requested that everyone dress in Hawaiian attire for the memorial!) and will be buried alongside his wife in Honolulu.

What I learned about him that stood out for me at the memorial was that the most important thing to Mr. Fujii was his love of people and his friends.  He kept friends from every phase of his life.  He was inspired by people and hoped to inspire them in return with endless support and love.  This is what I remember about him.  His constant smile and warm encouragement of these young children who would be passing through his life.  He made a huge impression on most of us in his sixth grade class at John Muir Elementary School, class of 1965.

Ken Gerver, a student of Mr. Fujii’s at John Muir School, kindly alerted me of this video he made of his time in the interment camps.  I know you will find it as moving as I did. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m11EYpixVyQ.

It would delight me and others, dear Reader, if you leave comments or stories about Mr. Fujii.

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January in Berkeley

27 Monday Jan 2014

Posted by Lisa Bruce in Gardens, Thoughts

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Azaleas, Hummingbirds, Japanese anemone, Rhododendrons, Willard Junior High School

The San Francisco Bay

The San Francisco Bay

Here we are in one of the most spectacular places in the world – How could we be so lucky?!! This is the sunset the other night from my friends’ Dawn & Mark’s home in the Berkeley Hills.

An unusually warm evening. Typically January has three alternating days of cozy, refreshing rain then three days of glorious warm, sunny days that are perfect for hiking in the hills where we hike through the green grass with blue sky and fragrant, blossoming, brilliant yellow acacias trees. I love walking up a hill with my vision being all three of those vibrant colors.

This year has been very strange. Only two days of rain in my recollection. Very eerie. No green grass in the hills. Just grey/brown. My brother, Anthony, was commenting that when he was raking in his garden, dust was swirling. This is not January in our history. Winter and early Spring is the only time we get rain in California so rain now is crucial and this is very disconcerting. The garden doesn’t look like Fall, Winter or Spring. The plants are terribly confused. I’ve begun pruning the roses and it’s an unusual challenge as the leaves are healthy green and the plants aren’t sure what to do. Typically the leaves have turned partially brown or fallen off and it’s very easy to tell where to make a cut.

Peek-a-boo roses before pruning

Peek-a-boo roses before pruning

What is typical in my Berkeley garden in January is the Japanese plum blossoming.  There are a few varieties that grow as volunteers in shades of pink or white and are such a treat to see when the winter can be so bleak.  They cheer us up and I always hope the blossoms will survive the rain storms but more often than not the ground is covered with “snow” before too long.

Japanese plum blossoms

Japanese plum blossoms

In the days we walked to Willard Junior High School the smaller, very fragrant, Japanese plums that lined the streets in the parking strips were in bloom around Valentine’s Day. They were just the right height to get a good whiff!

The azaleas love blossoming in January.  This year they are not as prolific as usual without the rains but they are still showing their glory.  The mucronatum blossom a second time in June.

Mucronatum azalea

Mucronatum azalea

White azalea

White azalea

Here is the first bud on one of the Cornubia Rhododendrons.  They are always in full bloom for St. Valentine’s Day, which seems so appropriate.

Cornubia Rhododendron

Cornubia Rhododendron

Primroses are also showing their bright, cheery faces!

Primroses

Primroses

The humming birds were watching me photograph the azaleas as they were having their breakfast!

Hummingbird at breakfast

Hummingbird at breakfast

The hummingbirds grab the fluff from the old Japanese anemones to use in building their nests.  They are so busy right now but I’m not fast enough to capture them with my camera as they are doing this.

Japanese anemones in the nest building stage

Japanese Anemones in the nest building stage

The nests they build are so small and soft and only 1 1/4 ” across.  Very padded with lovely anemone fluff.  I was lucky to have this one from the garden from last year.

Hummingbird nest

Hummingbird nest

I hope you enjoyed the tour of my January garden and that it warmed up my Midwest and East Coast crowd!

Expression through style with Pattie Gerrie

17 Friday Jan 2014

Posted by Lisa Bruce in Creative People, Inspiring People

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Tags

antique cameos, ethnic clothes, fashion & style, Martha Toledo, Oaxaca, Pattie Gerrie, vintage clothes, xoloitzcuintli

So many ways to express who we are…

My friend, Pattie Gerrie, has a way of creating an entire picture with how she puts together her attire.  Every detail of her outfits will relate to the story she’s telling that day in who she feels like being.

Pattie Gerrie at the Gatsby Picnic

Pattie Gerrie at the Gatsby Picnic

In the picture above Pattie is picnicking at the Gatsby Summer Afternoon.  Most other women were wearing organdy or chiffon, flowered dresses but Pattie had on Eastern European clothes from the 1920’s.

Pattie enjoys collecting things she loves.  On this day she’s wearing her collection of cameos.

Pattie with her collection of cameos.

Pattie with her collection of cameos.

Here is Pattie wearing most of her cameos on her headpiece.

Pattie with a headdress of cameos

Pattie with a headdress of cameos

Pattie in her entire ensemble

Pattie in her entire ensemble

Ethnic is a favorite of Pattie’s.  She loves things that have the soul of the creator in them.  She loves vintage but will also go with quite contemporary worn in a way that can’t be recognized.

Out walking with Pattie

Out walking with Pattie

Pattie at my Birthday party with a swan hat and a poodle purse.

Pattie in swan hat, clutching poodle purse

Pattie in swan hat, clutching poodle purse

Pattie and her husband, John McFadden.  Pattie is wearing a skirt of peacock feathers.

Pattie pretty as a peacock

Pattie pretty as a peacock

Here I am with Pattie at the Carnaval Festival in San Francisco.  Pattie has been instrumental in bringing the Mexican dog, Xoloitzcuintli, to march in the parade.

Waiting for the parade to begin on a foggy May morning

Waiting for the parade to begin on a foggy May morning

Below is Pattie exploring the ruins of Southern Mexico

Pattie @ruins copy

Pattie gets inspiration from the women of Mexico.

Singer, Martha Toledo, with Pattie in Oaxaca

Singer. Martha Toledo, with Pattie in Oaxaca

Here is Pattie enchanting a guest at a dinner party.

Pattie at a supper party

Patty at a supper party

Pattie in her Christmas tree hat …

Pattie on Christmas Day

Pattie on Christmas Day

Bye, bye!  Thanks for visiting!

Pattie Gerrie

Pattie Gerrie

 

 

 

 

 

Printing at Kala Art Institute

14 Tuesday Jan 2014

Posted by Lisa Bruce in Art & Architecture

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Tags

architect Albert Kahn, artist Trevor Tubelle, Berkeley Architectural Heritage Association, Dry Point Printing, Heinz Building, Kala Art Institute, photographer Daniella Thompson

 

Drypoint print with watercolor tint by Lisa Bruce

Drypoint print with watercolor tint by Lisa Bruce

Recently I was fortunate to take a workshop at the Kala Institute in Berkeley to study dry point printing with Tevor Tubelle.  He’s a fun and patient instructor who spends most of his teaching time at Stanford so we were lucky to have him here to show us how to prepare the copper plate, etch our designs into it and then print on the fabulous hand presses available.

Printing at Kala Institute with Trevor Tubelle

Printing at Kala Institute with Trevor Tubelle

Kala Art Institute is an international workshop and forum for ideas with exceptional printing facilities for professional artists. It has a residency program, gallery, library and workshops.
Kala Art Institute: Artist Residencies, Gallery – Exhibitions & Art …www.kala.org/
Heinz Building, Berkeley - photo by Daniella Thompson

Heinz Building, Berkeley – photo by Daniella Thompson

The Kala Art Institute is in the old Heinz (57 Varieties) Building in West Berkeley and is a perfect example of reuse of an older building.  It was designed by architect Albert Kahn and built in 1927.  The extremely large, elegant Mediterranean style industrial manufacturing building now houses Kala Institute along with many retail businesses and offices.

Entrance in the Heinz Building - photo by Daniella Thompson

Entrance in the Heinz Building – photo by Daniella Thompson

More information on this building can be found on the Berkeley Architectural Heritage Association website   http://berkeleyheritage.com/berkeley_landmarks/heinz.html

Heinz Building facade - photo by Daniella Thompson

Heinz Building facade – photo by Daniella Thompson

 

 

The David Hockney Exhibit

07 Tuesday Jan 2014

Posted by Lisa Bruce in Art Exhibits, Artists

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

David Hockney, De Young Museum, iPad art

Recently my friend, Karl Kardel, whisked me off to see the David Hockney exhibit at the de Young Museum.

by David Hockney

by David Hockney

The exhibit is on through January 20th.

David Hockney: A Bigger Exhibition | de Young

deyoung.famsf.org/press-room/david-hockney-bigger-exhibition
These, over 300 pieces, were assembled specifically for this exhibit at the de Young Museum.  One thing that makes it so remarkable is that this is the, nearly, complete work of an artist in about a three year span.  It’s a wonderful progression of what he was doing in this very prolific period.
by David Hockney of his property in East Yorkshire

by David Hockney of his property in East Yorkshire

There are rooms where you can sit and be surrounded by his extremely colorful year round studies of his property in East Yorkshire.  I loved this part of the exhibit especially.  It was mesmerizing being engulfed in his colors of his world.  His use of the  iPad and technology has been very instrumental.  He’s a man not afraid of trying new things.
His paintings of Yosemite were a joy to experience also  …
by David Hockney

by David Hockney

…. along with the portraits.
The inkjet enlargements of his charcoal drawings of The Arrival of Spring 2013, done outside on his property, were stark, as that time of year can be, along with having an elegance in line.
There was much to see here – A show not to miss!

A Christmas Eve Table

06 Monday Jan 2014

Posted by Lisa Bruce in Table Art

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

Berkeley, Christmas, Laura & Kiran Fabrics, Lauren McIntosh, Noe Valley, Table Art, Table settings, Tail of the Yak, Urban Nest

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve

There are so many ways to bring magic and beauty into our lives and give a special experience to our friends.  One way I like to do this is with table settings.  I had an especially fun time developing my Christmas Eve table.

The theme is a sparkly, antique silver effect with a hint of white.   The moon reflecting on snow and icicles.  A mood of the late 1700’s up to today.  All lit by over a dozen candles to reflect off the many glittering surfaces.

For this setting I used a soft grey, raw silk fabric with a white, cotton organdy over that.  All of this was atop a burgundy, raw silk, floor length, gathered cloth that I had also made.  Every fabric I used I bought at Laura & Kiran in Berkeley were they are helpful and have a wonderful selection of Indian textiles.  Then silver beaded placemats that I happily found on sale a few months ago.  They are what stimulated this table design.

The water glasses are a collection of antique leaded glass and contemporary hand blown glass, though I had forgotten to put them all on the table as I use some as glasses for watercoloring in my painting studio!

Table setting detail

Table setting detail

The place cards are designed by the artist, Lauren McIntosh, that I added silver glitter to and they are sitting in place card holders from the shop, Tail of the Yak, in Berkeley.  I can’t remember where I found that fabulously enormous ornament used as the center piece.  Was it Tail of the Yak, also?  The reindeer are from Urban Nest, a shop that used to be on 24th Street in Noe Valley and has moved down the Peninsula.  The silverware is what I have inherited and purchased over the years.

This is the first time I have not had flowers on the table but because this is a Winter Wonderland theme there are no flowers to be found on this snowy, night table.

placecard copy
The Christmas crackers (some call them poppers) were made by Margaret Saydah and myself.  They are filled with chocolates, a paper hat and a couple of other surprises!

Cracker copy
I wish I could have had you all here!
Happy New Year!

 

In Commemoration of the Civil Rights Movement

03 Friday Jan 2014

Posted by Lisa Bruce in Inspiring People, Thoughts

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Tags

Belva Davis, Civil Rights Movement, Congresswoman Barbara Lee, Daughters of the Civil Rights Movement, Donzaleigh Abernathy, Jr. Freedom Center, Kerry Kennedy, Kevin L. Nichols, Lou Fancher, Luci Baines Johnson, Martin Luther King, Merritt College, Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir Ensemble, Peggy Wallace Kennedy, The Barbara Lee & Elihu Harris Lecture Series

 

event poster

My friend, Margaret McAlone, graciously invited me to go with her to this historic and inspiring evening.

Imagining having, all together in one room, these dynamic and caring women:

Congresswoman Barbara Lee

Congresswoman Barbara Lee

Congresswoman Barbara Lee

Retired TV news anchor Belva Davis

Belva Davis

Belva Davis

Daughter of the Reverend Abernathy, actress, producer, director, writer, Donzaleigh Abernathy

Donzaleigh Abernathy

Donzaleigh Abernathy

Daughter of President Lyndon Baines Johnson, business woman and activist, Luci Baines Johnson

Luci Baines Johnson

Luci Baines Johnson

Daughter of Senator Robert Kennedy, human rights activist and writer, Kerry Kennedy

Kerry Kennedy

Kerry Kennedy

Daughter of Governor George Wallace, activist for promoting racial healing, Peggy Wallace Kennedy.

Peggy Wallace Kennedy

Peggy Wallace Kennedy

The evening was put on by The Barbara Lee and Elihu Harris Lecture Series produced by Merritt College and the Martin Luther King, Jr. Freedom Center in Oakland, California.  The focus was the East Bay Commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the 1963 events of the Civil Rights Movement.

Belva Davis was the moderator and we were lucky to hear her story before she began her introductions.   Ms. Abernathy spoke as I imagine he father must have – a very powerful and mesmerizing speech with a slide show of horrifying images of segregation in the South. She spoke of Martin Luther King, Jr., her godfather, and the time the family home was bombed and of her close friend who was seriously injured in the bombing of the church.

Ms. Johnson spoke of her experiences and what she knew of her father’s actions and feelings at the time.  Ms. Kennedy spoke of her remembrances and of her father’s actions while Ms. Wallace Kennedy spoke of living in the shadow of the day her father stood in the doorway blocking two African-American students from entering the university and integrating the school.  She now works to promote racial healing.

All the women were incredible speakers telling remarkable stories about a time of necessary change in our country.  I can’t imagine there was a dry eye during some of the talks and everyone left inspired.

To add to the evening the Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir Ensemble honored us with their singing gospel and spiritual music.  It was a night I was thankful I experienced and am grateful for the work these women are doing to bring about continued changes.

For more on this event of the Daughters of the Civil Rights Movement please read the articles byLou Fancher in the Contra Costa Times and the article by Kevin L. Nichols.

 

 

Adventures in the Table Art Trade

02 Thursday Jan 2014

Posted by Lisa Bruce in Table Art

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Architectural photography by Daniel Moore, Gates by designer craftsman Julian Hodges, Mediterranean architecture by Walter Ratcliff, Photo styling by Lisa Bruce, Table decorations, Table settings

 

courtyard

Recently I was asked to help with a photo shoot for Julian Hodges, gate builder extraordinary.   He had been asked to design and craft gates for a Walter Ratcliff Mediterranean home.  The purpose was to remove drafts and lower sound from nearby traffic so the courtyard could become a lovely place to dine.   I was asked to set the table for the photos of the finished gates.

3 settings copy

It was fun coming up with something that would fit well with the gates so I borrowed my friend’s lily pad placemats, used Julian’s inherited bone handled flatware, along with his wooden plates he had commissioned from an English pig farmer/wood turner, black linen linens I had made, Mexican bowls from an old San Miguel potter, Moroccan lanterns and ginkgo leaves from the neighbors trees.          

detail copy

Daniel Moore was the photographer. He quickly and beautifully put on “film” just the mood we were trying to create to show off the gates.

Through doorway copy

A lovely setting and a satisfying adventure!

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