For more than two decades I had the urge to build a sculpture/building that would be a space for reflection, simplicity and spirit. Years ago, while working on the small nondenomination chapel at Sea Ranch, Calif., construction coordinator Thamby Kumaran told me his dream of building a small temple when he could find time and resources. The idea electrified me and never left. Twenty years later, after selling several large sculptures and coming across some fabulous materials, I gave myself the commission to build a small sacred building.

I’ve used the word teahouse for years to refer to this project because to me, teahouse connotes essential, everyday simplicity in harmony with nature. But it took a new form when I came upon an eloquent poem by Sonoma State University professor Elizabeth Herron at the Sonoma Mountain Zen Center. It struck me that I was building a “poetry house” rather than a teahouse, even though I had no idea what a “poetry house” would be. Elizabeth agreed to participate on the project, and she wrote a long poem, The Poet’s House, which we transcribed under layers of roof and the body of the structure to imbue this small sacred space with verse.

So what is a poetry house? It is a strange hybrid of a building, somewhat larger and more extravagant than a teahouse, but smaller and more humble than a temple; not as practical as a storage shed or as useless as an abandoned truck. Whatever the interpretation, this is how it came together. 

For additional photos of the Poetry House, see the back cover of Fine Homebuilding issue #196 (June/July 2008).

And for even more information about scultpor Bruce Johnson, including images of his work and additional views of the Poetry House, visit his Web site: http://www.formandenergy.com.