Last Friday, the LA design community was shocked to hear of the passing of John Chase. As West Hollywood's urban designer for 14 years, John Chase was responsible for so much that has put the city on the map, internationally as a beautifully and progressively designed place to live. John was not only a mentor for me in many ways, but also a colleague at the A+D and a genuine, good friend. Most of the time, we only truly appreciate and realize the blessings of our relationships when they are over. I will tell you - something about John made me fully aware, with each meeting, how lucky I was to know him. He had an authenticity, happy energy and genius about him. As a writer, he spoke of nuances in design, so provocative, that it impacted and changed me as a design writer. A few months ago, John and I collaborated on a review of his classic, Exterior Decoration: Hollywood’s Inside Out Houses. If you haven't read it, I believe that it describes John's personality and passions better than anything I can further articulate.
For those of you who knew him, a memorial will be held in John's honor at Plummer Park in West Hollywood, next Tuesday, August 24th 2010 4:00pm to 7:00pm Fiesta Hall, Plummer Park 7377 Santa Monica Boulevard West Hollywood, CA 90046-6620
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