Tuesday, November 13, 2007

His Insight

Evenings with Peter usually involved much debate and hours of infectious laughter...

4 comments:

Michael L said...

I first meet Peter in grad school at Sci-Arc. We had a theory class together, with a dense reading list. I was struggling to get through some Heidegger and I saw him reading Derrida’s Postcards, which wasn’t on the reading list. I asked him why he was reading that and he said that it was a distraction away from all the other reading. I thought that if that if this was his light reading then this guy must be smart. But as I got to know him over the years, I discovered that he was better than smart, but funny and smart. He always made me laugh and was a joy to be around. We crossed paths once a year at various architectural functions and parties in San Francisco. I could tell that his life went beyond architecture. He talked about obscure art performances, his place in Ukiah, the outdoors, his travels, or what ever else was on his mind. Sometimes I take myself too seriously, but around Peter I could let my hair down, although not as long as his. Architecture trains us how to see the world, but in Peter’s case I think he saw the everyday as spectacular and he lived it. He celebrated the mundane and was at peace with the outrageous. You will be missed.

Anonymous said...

The world lost a great soul on Sunday. He was the kind of guy everyone wanted to be around, who could make humor out of thin air. Evenings with Peter usually involved much debate and hours of infectious laughter on topics ranging from the most inane to the deeply erudite. It's an indrescribable loss for those of us that loved him dearly.
Posted sfgate.com 11/12/2007 5:38:07 PM

Anonymous said...

It’s been nearly 4 years since I first met Peter through my wife Liz Martin. We shared several holiday seasons with Peter, and as I spent more time with him, I was fortunate to know him better and I really, really liked him so very much. His passionate views about situations, the world and people affected me deeply. He had such a healthy distain for so many things that were ordinary or contrived. His views were so real, so in touch with a healthy place.

He was just getting over his divorce, and we all felt his pain, but we could see that he was working through it. But talking with him then; then sharing with him over the next few years delivered to me the gift of knowing a fine person, a creative soul that added to the world.

Anonymous said...

I met Peter for the first time at Burning Man this year. We spent the final day trapped in a wild dust storm with a few others after most everyone else had left... A barren wasteland of dust. I also found Peter had incredible energy -- warm, lighthearted, intelligent, and remarkably wise within the context of the blurred lines and messy realities of the world. I had actually hoped that we would become much better friends. It was not to be, but I'm glad so many others are appreciating what he brought to the world.