Author Archives: Emily Gordis
Dense, airy, crusty or soft: Berkeley’s best baguettes
As a child growing up in Berkeley, I’ve only tasted pre-sliced bread twice. When I was younger, my family traveled to Europe and I got to eat real French baguettes. Today, we live a few blocks from a bakery and get fresh bread every morning, like many Berkeley residents.
Our city is filled with world-class bakeries ranging from La Farine in north Berkeley to the Bread Garden near the Claremont hotel — and everything in between.
On Colusa Avenue, beach debris art with a twist
“Eccentric Artist in Residence” warns a sign outside of Mark Olivier’s house. Usually known simply as “the house on Colusa”, Olivier’s home is something of a legend in Berkeley because it is covered in art made from debris washed up on beaches. Many Berkeley residents know the house, but the owner himself is mostly anonymous, and the story behind it mostly untold.
Olivier, who grew up in Millbrae, says he started making the art about six years ago. “I’d been … Continue reading »
Passion for music underpins harpsichord maker’s craft
The front room of John Phillips’ West Berkeley workshop on Grayson Street is crowded with an Italian-style harpsichord in for repairs from Virginia and a French-style instrument, waiting to be delivered to its new owner in El Cerrito. In the next room, his assistant, Janine Johnson, is working on another French harpsichord which was commissioned by a client in Rome.
Phillips has built an international reputation as a harpsichord maker and restorer, but he stumbled into what became his lifelong … Continue reading »
