Tag archives: Lotusland

Memoirs Of A Garden
By Lynda Millner   |   August 8, 2019

“Lotusland was created by Polish opera singer Madame Ganna Walska, and visitors should prepare themselves for the ultimate theatrical garden experience. Perhaps only in the climate and culture of Southern California could such a creation have been conceived and accepted, a fantasy of remarkable set-pieces of design and planting quite unlike any other garden.” The […]

Belle of the Ball
By Richard Mineards   |   August 8, 2019

It was all a very hush-hush affair when Belle Hahn, daughter of the late billionaire art dealer Stephan Hahn, who died in 2011, celebrated her 35th birthday with a night on the tiles. More than 120 guests gathered on the rooftop of the MOXI Museum for the top secret bash, with Belle thinking she was […]

Memoirs of a Garden
By Richard Mineards   |   August 1, 2019

Lotusland, the 37-acre botanical nirvana created by the late opera singer Ganna Walska and dubbed one of the ten most beautiful gardens in the world, took on a decidedly oriental flavor when it celebrated Memoirs of a Garden for its popular sold-out annual 500-guest gala, which was expected to raise around $500,000. The floral fest, […]

Lotusfest
By Lynda Millner   |   July 18, 2019

Did you know that we have one of the ten best gardens in the world right here in Montecito? That would be Lotusland, which just celebrated its famed flower – the lotus – with the annual LotusFest. July is supposed to be their prime blooming time, but as one of the volunteers explained, “They are […]

Lotus Love
By Richard Mineards   |   July 18, 2019

Lotus lovers were out in force as Lotusland, the delightful botanical paradise, celebrated its annual LotusFest! in idyllic weather. More than 20 wineries and breweries poured their products for more than 300 guests, as they explored the late opera singer Ganna Walska’s 37-acre floral nirvana. Among those having a blooming good time were Tom and […]

Japanese Garden Complete
By Richard Mineards   |   June 20, 2019

Lotusland, the late opera singer Ganna Walska’s 37-acre botanical paradise, has just completed the biggest project in its history with the $6 million two and a half year renovation of the one and a half acre Japanese Garden. The massive project, designed in conjunction with Lotusland CEO Gwen Stauffer, Derrik Eichelberger of Arcadia Studio, and […]

Teresa McWilliams: A Horatio Alger Story
By Beverlye Fead   |   April 11, 2019

Teresa McWilliams was born in Warsaw, Poland in 1937, and lived there with her family on their farm in the countryside. Her father, Mr. Glinski, was a concert pianist and composer in Poland, and they lived the gentry life, until the Germans came and occupied the country. When Teresa was just two years old, the […]

Lotusland Announces Opening of Japanese Garden
By Kelly Mahan Herrick   |   January 18, 2019

After over two years of extensive renovations, Lotusland has announced the opening of its Japanese Garden, which was originally created in the 1960s and is the only remaining post-World War II Japanese Garden that is open to the public on the central coast between Los Angeles and the Bay Area.  Construction began in February 2017, […]

Gems of the Garden
By Lynda Millner   |   August 9, 2018

Lotusland held their always-sold out garden soirée, which seemed a metaphor for Montecito. As they said, “Just as our namesake, the lotuses, awaken annually from their winter dormancy to rise out of the deep mud and bloom in glorious splendor once again, we gather to celebrate our community’s extraordinary resilience and renewal.” This 37 acres […]

MAW or Less
By Richard Mineards   |   August 2, 2018

The Music Academy of the West’s 71st annual summer music festival is drawing to a close, with the Lobero and Hahn Hall hosting two well-attended concerts. The Festival Artists Series program featured Janacek’s Mladi, wrapping with Tchaikovsky’s Souvenir de Florence with Edward Dusinberre and Harumi Rhodes on violin, Geraldine Walther and Karen Dreyfus on viola, […]

Questions to Ask Your Insurer
By Montecito Journal   |   May 10, 2018

We received a good question from a leader in our community, John Abraham Powell, founder of the Bucket Brigade. We wanted to share Mr. Powell’s concerns with everyone. He and his crew have been asking people if they need assistance removing debris. To his surprise, many have answered that their insurance adjusters have instructed them […]

Garden Variety
By Richard Mineards   |   November 23, 2017

Lotusland supporters with a yen for horticulture turned out en masse for the groundbreaking of the $4.6-million renovation of the 60-year-old Japanese one-and-a-half-acre garden by dynamic designing duo Paul Comstock and Derrik Eichelberger. The original design was done by the late Frank Fujii, but time has taken its toll and it is undergoing a major […]