Thursday Doors – James Hubbell’s Doors and More

Several weeks ago, I saw an announcement about upcoming tours of a local artist’s compound. After closing the property to outsiders for two years due to Covid, they were once again opening it up to a limited number of visitors. In the past when I had read about these tours, I was interested but, for whatever reason, hadn’t gone. There was always an excuse, however, if I’m being completely honest, it boiled down to “Maybe I’ll go next year.”

If Covid has taught us anything, it is that “next year” isn’t guaranteed, and that things can change seemingly overnight. Even though this is true for everyone, at every age, it is especially true for those of us with more years behind us than in front of us. With this in mind – and not wanting to risk my inner procrastinator taking over – I went straight to my computer to reserve two tickets. I am so glad I did.

The compound, designed and built by James Hubbell, sits on a 40-acre ranch near the mountain town of Julian, California. An internationally renowned artist, poet, and architectural designer, Hubbell is widely known for his organic-style buildings which are works of art. His hand-crafted doors, stained glass windows, gates, and sculptures using wood, stone, metal, glass, and clay can be found throughout the property. Although most of the structures were built in the 1950s and 60s, several had to be rebuilt when a wildfire raced through the area in 2003. Now in his 90s, Hubbell no longer lives on the property, but his sons and the foundation he created, carry on his vision and his legacy.

Here are a few of the fabulous doors and windows I saw during the hour-long tour. I will share more next week.

Not only was the stained glass created on-site but the door hardware was also hand-forged on-site.
Mosaic and stained glass in one of the restrooms.

All windows and doors were unique works of art.
One of the several studios found on the property.
Close-up of the studio door. Note the beautiful hand-forged hinges and door pull (and cute kitty).
Even closer look at the door pull.

Meeting room door with hand-forged metal work.

I hope you enjoyed this peek at James Hubbell’s compound. Please come back next Thursday to see more of this incredible artist’s work. In the meantime, check out Dan Antion’s Thursday Doors post and see the doors that others have shared.

Author: Janis @ RetirementallyChallenged.com

My blog is about travel, relationships, photography, and whatever else pops into my head (even, sometimes, issues surrounding retirement and aging).

137 thoughts on “Thursday Doors – James Hubbell’s Doors and More”

  2. Absolutely beautiful! So unique. I’d love to tour sometime. I do agree with you about taking opportunities when they present, and not procrastinating. ❤️

  7. Wow and more wow, Janis. What a beautiful place and gorgeous doors. I’m so glad you went there and shared these photos with us. Can you imagine living in the midst of such art?

      1. Until recently, I never realized how much character a simple door can have! And now, I look at my own front door in disgust … it’s a brown that looks an ugly purple in sunlight, plain except for the wreaths we hang on it, and with numerous dents and scratches from the neighborhood kids! I want to paint a huge sunflower on it! But, that would get my kicked out of my apartment, not to mention that I have no talent and my sunflower would end up looking like a goat drooled on my door!

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