Stories Published in Western Art & Architecture

The Art of the Allison

Western Art & Architecture, February/March 2020

The Allison Inn vibrantly celebrates its place on 35 acres in Oregon’s spectacular Willamette Valley. On the surrounding hills, signature to the vinicultural area southwest of Portland, the 85-room luxury hotel in Newberg cultivates seven pinot noir and pinot vineyards. Throughout the LEED Gold-certified hotel and the site are 500-plus origi­nal works by more than 100 Oregonian artists, including paintings, photography, ceramics, fiber art and sculpture. And, the 100-seat restaurant, JORY, honors the glacier-deposited soil that has made the area world famous. The artworks are curated by Loni Parrish, the daughter of the hotel’s founder, the late Joan Austin, whose husband’s family homesteaded nearby seven generations ago. Her brother, Ken Austin III, handcrafted two tables, bothe part of the collection and your dining experience when you visit.

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Castle Hot Springs: Arizona Oasis

Western Art & Architecture, December/January 2019-20

The first time I heard about Castle Hot Springs Resort was shortly after moving to Arizona in 1981. At the time, the historic location in the Bradshaws north of Phoenix was chainlinked, and the owner, Arizona State University, wasn’t sure what was going to happen to it. Fortunately, Scottsdale-based developer and resort manager, Westroc Hospitality, working with current property owners, Mike and Cindy Watts of Phoenix, have just reopened it. The result is magnificent: Triumphantly renewed is the 123-year-old property once frequented by the Vanderbilts, Pews, Rockefellers and the Wrigleys. Teddy Roosevelt was here during his visit to dedicate the nearby dam on the Salt River named for him; his cousin Franklin Delano followed. John F. Kennedy was here as a recuperating WW II Navy veteran before he was president. Artist Maxfield Parrish and Bauhaus founder Walter Gropius also signed in. Come up for a few days and take the waters –– or at least read the story!

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Hassayampa Inn

Western Art & Architecture, December 2018/January 2019

Approaching its 100th anniversary, Prescott’s grande-dame, the Hassayampa Inn, is as grand today as then: “Infinite planning and real artistry have been employed to make the color effect in the lobby blend perfectly. To achieve this end, nothing has been overlooked, from the tile coloring in the spacious fireplace and the wall borders to the golden hued walls themselves,” enthused the reporter for the Prescott Evening Courier, November 19, 1927, on the just-opened hotel. The 67-room Spanish Colonial Revival/Italianate four-story is in mile-high Prescott, about 90 miles from Phoenix. Its adjacent Peacock Room serves fine food and drinks. A visit to the Hassayampa is a visit into the history of the Arizona’s first Territorial capital, founded in 1864 by emissaries of President Lincoln. Take a look inside the story, and the hotel, and enjoy.

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Wanderings: Tombstone

Western Art & Architecture, December/January 2018

For anyone with a love for American history and folklore, Tombstone, Arizona, is still very much Wanted! For a few lucrative years, the “Town Too Tough to Die” was Eldorado for goldstrikers, ore assayers and grubstakers. Here in 1881, the “Gunfight at the O.K. Corral” transpired, mismatching the formidable Earps, Wyatt, Virgil and Morgan, and Doc Holliday, against cattle-rustling cowboys, the McLaurys and Clantons, including 19-year-old Billy Clanton, not too tough to die. Silver ecstasy had found Indian scout and prospector Ed Schieffelin, who established the Tombstone Gold and Silver Mining Company and found other lodes such as Lucky Cuss, Tough Nut, Grand Central and Contention. Today, The Good Enough Mine Tour takes you underground daily to experience this. You can also visit the notorious Bird Cage Theatre and the Tombstone Historic Courthouse and enjoy boutiques and restaurants and, of course, witness brazen gunfights. Hands up!

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Architectural Artistry: The Symingtons’ Trailhead

Western Art & Architecture, June/July 2017

The Symington family of Paradise Valley envisioned their home as a celebration of their passions, heirlooms and artworks and a life shared with family and friends: It is their “Trailhead.” Designed by Arizona’s Gerry Jones, a master of residential desert architecture, the 10,380-square-foot-liveable home was completed in June 2014 by Scottsdale’s La Casa Builders. The five-bedroom, eight-bathroom three-level comprises four main-floor ensuite bedrooms; a second-floor master bedroom and its Japanese-inspired bathroom; and a wine cellar in the spirit of Old Portugal. Above the Moroccan-themed pool house is an upper-level view patio with a seating area and a fire pit, offering views of Camelback Mountain, Mummy Mountain, the McDowells and the Superstitions. “This home is a model of elegance and superlative craftsmanship,” says former La Casa partner, Ron Steege. “Its coordination of architectural artistry and art is simply extraordinary.”

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