Tracey Taylor

More Heart than Ego:

Gillian and James Servais build — and live — by putting comfort over status. By Tracey Taylor. Photography by Cody Pickens.

Diablo Magazine, July 2008

You may have spotted the distinctive pale adobe facades of homes designed by Gillian and James Servais in the hills above Berkeley and Oakland, or then again, you may not have. One of the couple’s trademarks is designing homes that blend into their surroundings.

With their dirt-colored stucco and discreet positioning, the 25 structures have been referred to as “stealth homes.” They are the antithesis of the architecturally strident “statement” houses that some people chose to build in the aftermath of the 1991 East Bay hills fire, which destroyed seven Servais-designed properties, including their own home.

The house they built in its place nine years ago, perched high on Grand View Drive in Berkeley and reached by a steep, winding driveway, enshrines the couple’s home-building philosophy and showcases their distinctive shared aesthetic.

Both are big fans of the teachings of UC Berkeley architecture professor Christopher Alexander, whose fundamental interest is in what makes human beings comfortable, James explains. The emphasis is less on image, style, or status, and more on the psychology of architecture and a belief in “timeless architecture.”

The mood at the Servais home is set the moment you arrive at the partially enclosed front entrance. A sandstone and steel fountain created by James flanks the front door, which is protected from the elements by the roof.

Just inside the entry, a relaxing, decompressing effect stems from the airy open-plan design of the interior. The look is rustic elegant, with limestone on the floor, slabs of sandstone as hearths, and beautiful old wood for the exposed beams and doors. The influences are Mediterranean and early Monterey with a dash of Southwest. Friends have nicknamed their approach Turbo Pueblo and Zuni Maybeck, but the pair say their style is evolving all the time. “We have gravitated toward a Californian look,” says Gillian.

The couple were ahead of the curve in using recycled materials. “We’ve been sourcing old wood and secondhand fixtures for more than 30 years,” says James, who followed his father into the construction business after deciding against a career as an artist and teacher. A favorite source in Santa Fe, as well as Urban Ore in Berkeley and C&K Salvage in Oakland, turns up choice pieces of mesquite and redwood. They visit quarries in the Western desert to find the perfect slab of sandstone for a fireplace and might wait to locate just the right intricately carved antique door from India or Mexico before creating a walk-in pantry around it. They say they find it soothing to be surrounded by all these gorgeous, gently worn natural materials.

The Servais’ kitchen, the heart of their house, serves to illustrate Alexander’s thinking. Appliances and counter spaces have been carefully designed with the natural sequence of prepping and cooking in mind. A collection of pots, pans, and copper molds is strung over a large kitchen table next to a traditional dresser that houses dishes and stemware. It’s a scene encountered in depictions of kitchens through the ages and across continents. All that’s missing is the open fire on which to roast that day’s meal.

Gillian honed her kitchen design skills at Cookworks, the north Berkeley store she co-owned from 1977 to 1982. “I became known as the kitchen doctor because clients would come in with their architect’s plans and say they didn’t like the way the drawers were positioned, so could I help,” she says.
Despite their patent enthusiasm and expertise for the home-building craft, Gillian and James are taking a sabbatical to focus on their art. Both studied art in college, but only now, after three decades of being somewhat sidetracked, are they pursuing their artistic passions. James creates modernistic sculptures inspired by Joan Miró and Alexander Calder, and Gillian is painting again after focusing on photography.

James’ sculpture garden offers hill views and features his striking pieces inspired by small-particle physics and the movement of dancers. Above his workshop—a cavelike space full of welding tools and partially worked chunks of marble—is Gillian’s studio. Photographic prints on the walls reveal her fascination with pattern, light, and texture—one shows an assemblage of darting koi, another a tortoise’s skeleton.

James has been a featured artist at Walnut Creek’s Bancroft Garden Sculpture Show and at San Francisco’s Atrium. Both artists planned to display work at an open studio at their home in June.

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A 1959 ranch house transformed into a 6,000 sq ft work of art.
By Tracey Taylor. Photography by Daniel Hennesy
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Diablo Magazine, September 2008

It’s safe to say you have never seen anything like Cynthia and Dan Deaver’s Orinda home. Designed and built over the course of more than two years, completed in 2002, and lovingly perfected since, this is a one-of-a-kind residence that isn’t shy about making a statement.

The attention paid to every detail (however minute), the standard of craftsmanship, and the quality of the materials used—from the verdigris copper on the exterior facing to the powder-coated stainless steel stair railings and kitchen backsplash—evoke the hard work and painstaking consideration that would be applied to creating a work of art: a 6,000-square-foot sculpture, perhaps, with living room and bedrooms thrown in.

The tale begins in the early 1990s when the couple, who work in finance and have two teenage sons, decided to move from the Oakland hills to Orinda. Orinda was where Cynthia had grown up, on two acres with horses, and they had set their hearts on sun, wide vistas, and an open yard. Finding the right home proved difficult, however: Many cookie-cutter houses were rejected, and half a dozen offers turned out unsuccessful.

They took two years to hit on the perfect spot: a 1959 ranch house on that rare find—a flat hilltop site with wraparound views and an abundance of natural light.

The Deavers gave the house paint and polish, but soon were itching to make more substantive changes. “Like so many major renovations, it began with a kitchen remodel,” says Cynthia. “Then, it got ‘scope creep.’ ” Serious scope creep. They hired Tennessee architect Michael Murdock, whose portfolio included a museum and a filmmaker’s studio. The Deavers moved to a condo, and the bulk of the original house was demolished to make way for an ambitious vision of contemporary living.

“When I was a child, the father of my best friend was an architect, and she lived in a wonderful modern house. I have wanted to create my own since then,” says Cynthia. Taking inspiration from the quintessential California homes designed by Richard Neutra and Shelton, Mindel & Associates, the plan was for “something modern but not cold, minimal but comfortable” to take advantage of the beauty of the site and to lend itself to entertaining.

Murdock’s solution was an ambitious blueprint calling for an almost dizzying array of planes, angles, and curves, and expansive glass walls, as well as a multitude of intersecting materials, none of which was allowed to touch. The Deavers say they fully understood what they had signed up for when it was explained that at each meeting of copper and granite, or wood and steel, the design called for a slender groove—a “reveal” to use the architectural term. “We had to draw the line at putting reveals on every wood beam,” says Cynthia, who shared the architect’s perfectionism but concedes the quest sometimes bordered on the obsessive.
A project of such scope inevitably threw up its share of snags. The original builders were replaced after several months of work, for instance, and the budget was exceeded fivefold. At one point, Dan remarked that it felt as though they had “set out on a ship and ended up on a rowboat with no paddles.”

The end result, however, proves that the time, effort, and expense paid off. One reason the home stands out is the commitment shown by architect and client to use specialist artisan craftspeople. Among them was Oakland–based metal fabricator Walter Craven, whose work included the entrance gate, the front door, the flue, and the stair railings. Two master painters worked on the delicate Venetian plasterwork. “Nothing is standard, and everything was custom-made,” explains Cynthia.

With its soaring double-height ceiling and curved opaque glass wall, the funnel-shaped powder room is worthy of an architectural monograph of its own. A mix of woods—pear, Brazilian cherry, and Douglas fir—used in the flooring, millwork, and beams lends warmth to all the interiors, as do several beautiful built-ins, including a set of curved surfboard-shaped shelves.

The furniture was chosen to complement rather than compete with the home’s complex architectural vocabulary. “We didn’t want to add another layer, but the furniture had to be robust enough to stand up to the architecture,” says interior designer Maria Tenaglia. Pieces were sourced from Belmar, Berman Rosetti, and Ted Boerner, among others. Cynthia is particularly fond of the Christian Liaigre/Holly Hunt coffee table in the family room.

The color palette for the furnishings was influenced by the natural setting. The soothing blend of sage, olive, celadon, and gold has accents of russet and orange. The master bedroom, which opens onto a private terrace, has a wash of pale mint green and features luxurious slate blue Fortuny bedding.

Last year, the decoration of the library was completed. This cozy, dark room has been given an Asian theme with mahogany-stained bookshelves and appropriately chosen artifacts. Cynthia says her family and guests love spending time there. “It’s ironic because we have all these wide-open spaces, but I think humans like to gravitate toward a cave,” she says.

The home is an ongoing project: The vertical-grain Douglas fir on the exterior is sanded down and repainted every year, for example, and the teak garden furniture is refinished annually. “It’s like a boat, rather than a house,” says Cynthia. While acknowledging that it’s a high-maintenance home, she wouldn’t have it any other way.

Photography by Chugrad McAndrews

Top by Matta; Bonedust by Lacey Coover necklace; necklace worn as a bracelet by Sara Sens; ceramic vases by Berkeley’s Joanna Mendicino; fabric book cover by Oakland-based Fwrap; scorched certified wood Smoke and Mirrors table by Oakland’s David Brunicardi; jeans by Del Forte.

Gray-blue top by Matta, $136, and double-chain necklace worn as a bracelet by Sara Sens, $80, available at Atomic Garden, 5453 College Ave., Oakland, (510) 923-0543,  www.atomicgardenoakland.com; Bonedust by Lacey Coover antler necklace, $125, and Camille silver stitch denim jeans by Del Forte, $190, available at Magnet, 2508 San Pablo Ave., Berkeley, (510) 848-1966, www.magnetboutique.com; Ceramic vases by Joanna Mendicino, blue $58 and white $52, available at Treehouse Green Gifts, 2935 College Ave., Berkeley, (510) 204-9292, www.treehousegreengifts.com; Smoke and Mirrors table by David Brunicardi, $1,500, available at www.dbfurniture.com; red fabric book cover by Fwrap, $8, available at Laurel Book Store, 4100 MacArthur Blvd., Oakland, (510) 531-2073, www.fwraps.com, and Mignonne Décor, 1000 Jefferson St., Oakland, (510) 444-5288, www.mignonnedecor.com.

Sleeveless dress by Habitude, $198, available at Atomic Garden; wine hand-painted copper locket with turkey vulture by Boo, $198, and big urchin ring by Alkemie, $99, available at August, 5410 College Ave., Oakland, (510) 652-2711, www.augustshop.com; laminated Douglas fir composite Cascade Topanga table by David Brunicardi, $1,500, available at www.dbfurniture.com; ginseng pumps by Charmoné, $319, available at Wildlife Works, 1849 Union St., San Francisco, (415) 738-8544, www.wildlifeworks.com.	Josh Jakus um bag, $110, Turning Leaf bracelet, $32, Molly m Designs laser-cut wood earrings, $42, and faux leather changing pad by Haiku, $12, all available at Treehouse Green Gifts; sustainable bamboo daisy tea light holder by David Brunicardi, $15, available at www.dbfurniture.com.
Atomic Garden journals, $6, and silver pendant bracelet, $42, and silver necklace with gold flower by Sara Sens, $64, all available at Atomic Garden; the Weekend Store’s vintage typewriter key necklaces by Adjouah Brodie, $38, available at Treehouse Green Gifts; notebook covers by Fwrap, $12, available at Laurel Book Store, Mignonne Décor, and www.fwraps.com.	A Verb for Keeping Warm Merino wool scarf, $160, black pointelle racerback tank top by Stewart Brown, $62, and double-chain necklace worn as a bracelet by Sara Sens, $80, all available at Atomic Garden; sachiko indigo pleated skirt by Tsurukichi, $448, available at August; Bonedust by Lacey Coover antler necklace, $125, available at Magnet.
Cashmere angelina oat top by Koi, available at August; wine bustle skirt by Twice Shy, $78, available at Wildlife Works; handcrafted American cherry Lambda chair by Berkeley Mills, $1,980, available at Berkeley Mills, 2830 Seventh St., Berkeley, (510) 549-2854, www.berkeleymills.com; nyree snake pumps by BCBG, $97.95, available at Nordstrom, 1200 Broadway Plaza, Walnut Creek, (925) 930-7959, and 1600 Stoneridge Mall Rd., Pleasanton, (925) 463-5050, www.nordstrom.com.	Pure wool blanket by Hiroko Kurihara, $440, and soy wax candle by Soya Love Candles, $30, available at Atomic Garden; Good on Paper calendar, $10, and recycled notecards, $18, both by Lisa Wong Jackson, available at Treehouse Green Gifts; 100% Pure cocoa-pigmented eye shadows, $35, available at 100% Pure Organic Apothecary, 2983 College Ave., Berkeley, (510) 836-6500, www.100percentpure.com.

This article appears in the April 2008 issue of Diablo Magazine

Diablo Magazine, August 2007

Hush co-owner Joanna Dawson’s Lafayette home is another expression of her unique style. By Tracey Taylor. Photography Caren Alpert.

Joanna Dawson Caren Alpert Joanna Daswon’s house is hard to categorize, which is just the way she likes it. Set high up in the Lafayette hills, with jaw-dropping vistas of Mount Diablo, the house mixes a casual Mediterranean vibe, bohemian chic, and the features of an old European castle with classic Modernist pieces. It’s natural that Dawson would live in a home that embraces an eclectic sensibility.

She’s a co-owner of Hush, a boutique that opened in Walnut Creek in 2000 and was one of the first in town to offer women an alternative to department stores. With its inventory of clothes by established as well as up-and-coming designers, the store caters to women who want to move beyond a suburban look—whether it’s the mom who wants to stay hip or any woman seeking what Dawson calls that “just-threw-it-on cool look.”

“I have a business background, but I’ve always loved fashion,” says Dawson, who has the fine features, long hair, and lithe physique of a ballet dancer, and is barefoot and wearing a floaty floral peasant top and jeans the day we meet at her home.

Her ability to mix and match styles becomes clear as we stroll by a Mies van der Rohe Barcelona daybed in the living area and a Herman Miller Noguchi coffee table and Charles Eames lounge chair in the TV room. These icons of sleek, functional design coexist with funkier pieces: the cherished old library desk in her study; a 1940s-style cabinet in her 12-year-old son’s bedroom, bought at a garage sale for $40; and a pair of beatnik Moroccan patchwork poufs in the master suite.

Dawson grew up in Quebec, and her Canadian roots mean a lot to her. She and her husband, Ken, and their two sons spend two months every year at their summer home in the Gatineau Hills of Quebec. “I like the contrast between our busy life here and the more laid-back life we lead there,” she says. “Also, there are no 16-year-olds driving BMWs where we go in Canada,” she adds.

After moving to California in 1995 and living in Danville for a year, the Dawsons happened upon their current house. Back then, it was in a much more primitive state, even though it was fashioned after Frank Lloyd Wright, and its future transformation required ample imagination. Built as a weekend retreat in the 1950s, the construction mixed redwood with exposed rubble packed in wire mesh. “Very rustic,” adds Ken.

An initial remodel of the 2,700-square-foot home added 1,200 more square feet of space and smoothed out the exterior, but the result didn’t cut it for Ken, who suggested, after living in the home for just a short time, that they move. “I wanted somewhere more finished,” he admits.

However, the thought of walking away from those amazing, 270-degree views led to remodel number two, which completely recast the house and infused it with its distinct character. Instrumental to the home’s transformation was an importer named Franz Fritzenwallner. It was Fritzenwallner who sourced the hand-forged wrought iron balustrades on the wraparound deck. He also found 500-year-old engraved bricks and antique beams salvaged from a Habsburg castle on the Danube River in Austria. He used the bricks to create the patio, and he turned the beams into a garden pergola.

Most of the art in the house is by Dawson’s uncle, the landscape and abstract artist Duncan De Kergommeaux. A somber, untitled collage above the hearth is a favorite. “I feel really drawn to his darker, more abstract work,” she says. Although Dawson describes herself as “the Dr. Kevorkian of the plant world,” her garden is inviting. She says the family often takes blankets outside and sits on the terrace to chat. When they have company, they break out the guitars and bongo drums. Her preferred time of year is the fall, when they watch the harvest moon come up over Mount Diablo.

Overall, Dawson is pleased with the way her home has turned out. “Not mainstream, a little artsy, and it defines what I am comfortable with,” she says, adding that her friend, interior designer Maria DiGrande, helped her steer clear of a “stodgy” look. That said, it’s a work in progress. The fireplace in the living room, for example, has never been exactly the Dawsons’ style, she says. It will have to go, to be replaced by something more modern. She is also rethinking the kitchen and exploring the idea of building a yurt in the yard. “We don’t move too fast,” she says. That’s probably a good thing, as Dawson’s schedule includes opening a second Hush boutique on Union Street in San Francisco, planned for later this month. The renovations will have to wait. “We’re not in a rush and want to do it well.”