This artist’s residence reflects her talent and taste

Gary Carnivele
FineLife Home
Photos by Ryan Lely

Tucked into a cul-de-sac above Fetters Hot Springs is a house that could almost double as a gallery. At the top of the little hill, a flagstone path leads up to a multi-level house constructed to allow in as much light as possible. This is the home gourd artist Thena Trygstad shares with her husband, Bruce, an inquisitive cat named Jasmine and an outstanding collection of her cherished art.
“It all started in 1995 when a good friend gave me a gourd plant as a housewarming present just after Bruce and my sons Kris and Tor finished building our dream house,” said Trygstad. “Before I knew it, 30 gourds had grown. I started to learn more about gourds and became interested in the creative ways I could use them.”
Trygstad, now retired after serving as vice-chancellor at U.C.-San Francisco, says she had been more accustomed to left-brain thinking (than to creative endeavors) throughout her professional career. Her interest in producing art was piqued when she became involved with the Arts Guild of Sonoma.
Using a mini-jigsaw, a wood-burning tool, glue, paper clay, dyes and acrylic paints, Trygstad cuts and reassembles gourds into extraordinary creations.
Colorful dragons – including a slithering creature in stunning shades of green that seems to have been made from puzzle pieces – peer down from atop bookcases. A working clock is really a teapot painted earthy rust. Especially whimsical is “Moon in Pisces,” a gourd fish that appears to be swimming beneath a full moon.
In the spiffy white-and-blue kitchen (a combination that reflects the family’s Swedish heritage) contrasting splashes of bold color show up in the larger-than-life fruits and vegetables – a pear, a strawberry, an eggplant – that Trygstad fashioned from ordinary dry gourds. A mushroom nestles among cookbooks; a delightful open pea pod rests upon a hutch.

In a loft above the great room, Trygstad works in another art form, colorful and personal Journey Books incorporating elements of collage and haiku poetry.
Several doors open onto redwood decks that jut into a forest of oaks and olive trees that shelter some wild visitors: Stellar jays, raccoons, opossums, deer and the occasional red fox. “We have lived in the Valley 25 years and think this is one of the best areas,” said Trygstad. “Our home, like my artistic endeavors, is a work in progress. I am thrilled to be surrounded by the work of fellow Guild artists as well as the pieces of mine that I just couldn’t let go.”
“The Arts Guild is the reason I am now an artist and have a place to sell my work where the artists are involved in the decision making process and operation of the gallery,” said Trygstad, who currently serves as president of the board.

Thena Trygstad’s work can be viewed on her Web site, www.sonomagourds.com and at the
Arts Guild of Sonoma,
140 Napa St. Sonoma; 707.996.3115;
www.artsguildsonoma.com.
Hours: Sun. – Mon. 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.;
Fri. – Sat. 11 a.m. – 9 p.m.;
Closed Tues. – Thurs.