Ilan-Lael’s 40th anniversary this year coincides with 40 years since the passing of San Diego’s famed midcentury modern architect, Sim Bruce Richards. “Bruce,” as most addressed him, was the close friend, benefactor, and colleague of James Hubbell from the 1950s to the early 1980s. James contributed architectural elements, sculptures, carvings, lamp fixtures, and art glass…
Recently, I received a phone call from a man named Tom Siiter, a retired video editor from Los Angeles. He told me he and his friend Tim Studley had worked on the construction of the Hubbell drafting studio in the early 1980s. But Tom wasn’t just reminiscing; he was cleaning house. After 40 years of…
She learned to fly in a bi-plane. She built a house by hand with her husband James. Together they raised four boys, which is a great accomplishment in itself. On top of that they founded the Ilan-Lael foundation. A wonderful legacy indeed. This month we celebrate the birthday of Anne Hubbell who played a pivotal…
Anton Yakushev came to the U.S. from Russia on a three-month visa to teach blacksmithing on the West Coast. A sculptor of international renown, his work was blackballed by Putin for its anti-war sentiment. Cathy Conheim, a San Diego therapist and long-time friend and patron of James Hubbell, volunteered to house Anton and his wife…
Recently Ilan-Lael hosted 50 high school students from High Tech High in San Marcos, California, who spent a day learning to look at their world in a new way. Watershed Explorers is a program of the San Dieguito River Valley Conservancy that provides young people the opportunity to experience and appreciate nature, culture, and the…
Environmentalist Diane Coombs, a friend of Ilan-Lael, looks back on battles lost and won. Walking the grounds of Ilan-Lael with Diane Coombs is a special treat. Sure-footed fora 91-year-old, her eyes shine as she takes everything in — as if for the first time, but she’s been here many times before. Her enthusiasm buoys all…
A one-eyed coyote, a very muscular bobcat, a ballerina fox…what else will we see? Recently our caretaker and resident mosaic guru Emilie has been working with Field Manager Hans Peterman from the Wildlife Research Institute to capture some footage of our furry friends on the llan-Lael property. He and Emilie chose four spots to set…
All eyes were on Shelter Island this past weekend for the Pacific Rim Park Friendship Walk! Our walk was a fine ramble on a fine day, celebrating the friendship of countries located around the Pacific Rim, enjoyable on every level. The giant Friendship Bell will rung! Friends of James Hubbell and Pacific Rim Park “veterans”…
Meet our PRP Friendship Walk Partners The PRP Friendship walk invites our diverse international community to come together in a friendly, healthy, and informal setting under the banner of friendship. We hope you will enjoy learning more about them, and please make sure to join us for the PRP Friendship Walk! As our founder, James…
Bob and Ingrid Coffin have been fans of James’s art and philosophy for more than 30 years. Ingrid first learned about James Hubbell through her interest in stained glass. Inspired by James’s work in the community and his beautiful appreciation of nature, members of the Blue Sky Ranch Fellowship, which is a community created by…
Friend and volunteer Christine Hoey hosted the first Cyanotype Workshop here at Ilan-Lael Art Center You might be wondering… What are Cyanotypes? Generally referred to as a contact print photogram, cyanotypes are photographic printing process where treated paper is exposed to ultraviolet light and develops into a beautiful print in shades of cyan blue,…
Walk for Peace! Sunday November 20th 10 am – 1 pm Shoreline Park, Shelter Island Ilan-Lael Foundation is sponsoring a walk on Sunday November 20th, 2022 from 10 am to 1 pm, along Shoreline Park on Shelter Island, one of San Diego’s most beautiful Port waterfronts, and home to our Pacific Rim Park “Pearl of…
Our world is in crisis, in many places and on many levels; climate change, war, political division, oppression. Indestructible hope and joy are too often marginalized. Now is the time to centralize visions of hope and wisdom, and build a foundation for a culture of peace. This is the goal of a day-long seminar titled…
by Laurel Costa Glass is one of the most dynamic mediums used by James Hubbell. Antique glass, glass cutlet (aka glass slag), and glass tile appear in almost every piece of art he creates; he knows it brings light and a certain sense of mystery and energy that can transform architecture or sculpture into forms…
A message from Ilan-Lael Archivist Laurel Costa Seeking Carmel Repp: We need help from the Ilan-Lael Community In 1983 James Hubbell illustrated a book named “Environmental Design for Children” written by interior designer Carmel Repp, ASID. A very small number of copies were printed and the Hubbell Archive holds a single copy of this incredible…
by Peter Jensen with Betty Wheeler A celebration of Del Mar’s first public artwork, a sculpture by acclaimed artist James Hubbell, took place on June 3, 2022, with the unveiling of two bronze plaques at a reception held in front of the Del Mar Library, the sculpture’s location. The event was co-sponsored by the Del…
by Laurel Costa When AnomaR, an art festival hosted by the Art Center of Ramona, approached James early this year and suggested that Ilan-Lael could become a “collaborator,” he gave an enthusiastic blessing: “It sounds wonderful!” James and all of us at Ilan-Lael were excited to become a part of the Art Center festivities because…
James Hubbell became enamored of The Firebird myth, an important Slavic and Russian folktale, after reading the book Land of the Firebird: The Beauty of Old Russia by Suzanne Massie. He built his first Firebird Window in 1981. He traveled to Vladivostok in 1989, as part of a delegation of four San Diego artists invited…
by Laurel Costa Recently, I sat down with glass artisan Cindy Mushet-Shriver in the Hubbell Studios stained glass loft. She stretches across an eight-foot table of vivid red and blue glass as we chat about her forty-plus years working for James Hubbell, a local artist who has been in the Julian hills since 1958. Cindy…
Helms Bakery District and the Ilan-Lael Foundation are pleased to present In Harmony with Nature: The Architectural Work of James Hubbell, an exhibition of select creations by unique California-based artist, designer, craftsman and dedicated environmentalist James Hubbell. On view from April 22 to June 18, 2022 inside the Helms Design Center, the exhibition celebrates the…
by Laurel Costa Julian local, Bill Porter, has been visiting Ilan-Lael recently to contribute to the Hubbell Archive project. On a recent visit he brought friend and bronze expert, Pete Mitten to recollect their adventures working with James Hubbell in the late 1970’s. As we looked at black-and-white photographs of flaming crucibles, we talked about…