Filoli

Filoli is a 654-acre mansion and garden in Woodside, CA that was built after the 1906 earthquake by the Bourn family, who owned the Empire Gold Mine in Grass Valley, CA.  The mansion was designed by Willis Polk, one of California's leading architects, and the garden was designed by Bruce Porter, a San Francisco artist and designer.  The Bourns lived in the house until their deaths in 1936, after which the house was sold to the Roths, who owned Matson Navigation.  Mrs. Roth donated the estate to the National Trust for Historic Preservation in 1975.  The estate is open from February through October and plantings in the garden change seasonally, tended by 14 staff horticulturists and hundreds of interns and volunteers.  We spent an afternoon there a couple of days ago with a 100mm f/2.8L macro lens that I rented for the occasion.  Here are some of my favorites from the day.