By Tom Elias

This display is a departure from traditional Japanese methods of displaying a hut stone in a shallow wood base or in a suiban with moss. This three-piece arrangement attempts to convey a home on an old mountain top that has been eroded to a rounded top. “Mountain retreat” consists of a natural stone on top, a hallowed wood burl representing a mountain, and a shallow wood base representing the land around the base of the mountain. The natural hut shaped stone was collected by Santo Burrato in Trentino Alto Adige in northeastern Italy. The burl and base was made by Patrick Metiva following a suggestion by Tom Elias. A subtle path leading from the base to the top of this mountain was carved on the burl.