I biked up the steep incline to the Montalvo Arts Center, also known as the iconic Villa Montalvo, an estate-turned-public park nestled in the Saratoga foothills. There are beautiful gardens, artwork, sculptures scattered throughout the grounds, and hiking trails that lead to a redwood forest. Back in the day, members of my watercolor group: The "Saratoga Community of Painters," use to paint our renderings of Villa Montalvo. We even showcased our work at our own art show sponsored by Montalvo Art Center. My expectations for selling my work were low. But, I was honored when the director of that event bought one of my paintings. It has since become a quiet refuge that is just a bike ride away. This time, instead of just riding up and through the grounds, I stopped to admire all the artwork and sculptures in all the nooks and crannies. The day before Thanksgiving I went just after lunchtime and virtually had it all to myself. There were a couple of people quietly doing Tai Chi and walking meditation.
The hiking trails are free and picnics on the wider, sloping Great Lawn in front of a magnificent villa are allowed. The Montalvo Arts Center is the former country estate of James Duval Phelan, the former mayor of San Francisco and U.S. Senator is maintained by Santa Clara Parks. The name “Montalvo” is an homage to Garci Ordonez de Montalvo, a Spanish author credited with creating the name “California.” In the 16th century, Montalvo wrote a famous novel set on a mythical, treasure-laden island called California.” Phelan named his estate to “Villa Montalvo,” to honor the author Montalvo for the origin of the state’s name and to link his estate to California’s past.
Throughout the Montalvo Arts Center are images of griffins, a mythic cross between a lion and an eagle. They were considered the pets and protectors of strong women rulers in Montalvo’s novel. It was also a way for Phelan to further deepen the connection to Montalvo’s story, imagining the griffins watching over his country estate. Two griffins or pedestals mark the entrance to Montalvo Road. There is also a Mermaid Pond and a blue sculpture created by Los Angeles-based artist Kenny Scharf, that combines elements of nature with cartoon-like designs. Thenn there is the Italianate Garden gates that opens onto a brick walkway lined with Italian cypress trees, that lead directly to the Love Temple, a gazebo with satyrs grabbing hold of a basin. The statue of Venus that used be above them was vandalized and later destroyed as well in the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake.
Closer to Villa Montalvo is a large group of birdhouses wrapped around a cedar tree, called the Control Tower by Cameron Hockenson, an alumnus of the Lucas Artist Residency Program at Montalvo Arts Center. The art work honors the loss of songbirds. The estate itself was built in 1912.
