Gregory D. Gusse

RESUME

Preparing a synopsis of the past 40 years or so of my work is an interesting challenge.  It is a great deal of fun to reflect on what I consider meaningful and wonder if others will do so too.  And it is with great anticipation that I look forward to the coming years as filled with adventure and excitement as the past.  Life and work have been good.

I have no particular purpose for writing this, no job prospecting or other requirement, so I have chosen to do this as a chronological narrative of my complete work history and unusual education.  I have never followed a formal path, anyway, and this narrative might make a more interesting reading. Who knows maybe some eclectic “think tank” or other money for “concept” folks will stumble on this and say ‘just what we’re lookin’ for’.

Perhaps someday I’ll do an autobiography.  I have seen many curious things and met wonderful people but for the moment and brevity this will have to do.   

As I put this together, I was pleased to see that I have stuck to my guns all these years; in my own way, of course.  Throughout, I have maintained the same three focuses regardless of the pursuit of the moment, artistic design, structure, and philosophy.  As the wonderful Sam Clayton would consistently remind me, as he partnered in and critiqued my work while he painted portraits for his art, ‘it is all about the light’.  Applying, capturing, reflecting “the light” is as appropriate to computer programming as it is to architecture of stone, as germane to writing as to photography or to school bus driving or to jewelry.

Probably 1967 is the place to begin, not that my early childhood wasn’t formative to my career.  For instance, I’m absolutely positive that my childish and stubborn reaction to having Russian language classes cancelled in seventh grade and being forced to “learn” French ended my interest in theoretical physics and Mr. Gross’ absence for the fetal pig dissection in biology that same year probably influenced my artistic experimentation by allowing me to instigate the roasting of the little devils on spits with the Bunsen burners then hanging the charred remains out the windows by their entrails to the delight of the home-ec class two stories below us.  Those occurrences and situations of this nature influenced my development but were important only to me as were the classic employments, newspaper boy, lawn and garden care, and some crafts, of a young man. 

In ’67 a whole new world opened to me.  My family (with me too) had moved to California the prior year.  I went to the local high school, totally out of place.  It wasn’t just my blazer, tie and wingtips, nor my strong north of Baltimore accent, but I had already completed all the courses the school had to offer except 3 “senior level”.  The school determined that I was too young for those and placed me in an “experimental” program allowing me to take some classes at Pomona College and filling in time served with classes at the high school in comparative religion, philosophy and pot making.

Pomona College had just received a brand new IBM 360/40 and I chose some computer science and programming courses.  I worked in the new Fortran IV and some with the new business language COBOL.  I was a crummy programmer finding it boring and tedious, especially punching cards, but I was a superior program designer quickly able to “see” a path and structure to solution.  In hindsight my only great accomplishment was my computer science paper.  I had some vague notion that a language could be written encapsulating sub-routines and data.  I think I got a “C” on it, though I had some lively conversations with a scientist from Burroughs on my idea.  Sadly I didn’t have the vernacular to clearly state my vision.  Twenty-five years later I found out what these “objects” were called.

In my computer science class was an extremely bright fellow named Jan Zaberski, who took a liking to me.  Jan was, I think, a communications major and spent a lot of time discussing radio with me.  It turned out he had a radio show at the college station.  I had argued with him that the structured, and in my opinion inane, drivel of commercial radio was in fact, too, Orwellian.  I suggested that a stylized informative approach could be developed that was more artistic and might at times require no talking at all.  On April 7, 1967 I got my chance to test my theories and began my short but stellar career in radio.  I received my radio engineers license and moved from the college station to the new “FM Underground” station KPPC in Pasadena that was utilizing the same format.  Later I worked for WXRB in Cincinnati.  I’d like to say I invented the format and in a way I did but at precisely, well 2 hours earlier, at KMPX in San Francisco the same concept was put into place.

In ’68 I went to work for the Claremont Courier, a local weekly paper.  My job was a modern version of a copy boy.  I would take the paste-ups to the printer in Riverside, wait for the press runs and return and distribute the paper to the paper stands.  Occasionally I would get to repair the Compugraphics typesetting machine which made me a hero and I did get to write a couple articles about radio.   

After a while I got Hole Publishing (the printer) to hire me as a stripper.  Despite the neat response I get from folks when I say I was a stripper, the job was the correction of faults in the photo plates, registry and burning of the actual offset plates used in the web printing process.  I learned a great deal about printing and photography in a very strict environment.

I ran for student body president and was apparently enough of a threat that the vice-principal actually went and had my transcript changed to lower my grade point average to make me un-qualified a week before the election. Lucky for me, my friends controlled the computer that stored the schools information and changed my honors ratings back to what they were and arranged that I would show as in attendance for the next semester.  I was free and graduated!  It took three years before the school found the discrepancy.  A discussion concerning state and federal money they had received for my attendance led to their allowing me to retain my diploma…I think.

I did go off to CalTech, for a day, apparently I had done well enough on a competitive test in physics to qualify for some sort of scholarship.  But I didn’t like the atmosphere so I moved to Santa Cruz.

1969 really wasn’t a very good year as far as scholastic and work advancement went.  I did “audit” a photography class at Cabrillo Junior College and picked peas in Watsonville.  I tried to find a “real” job but was consistently told that I was “over qualified” and wouldn’t be worth training because I would obviously leave for college.  Picking peas turned out to be the most “real” job I would ever have.

Towards the end of the year, I determined to pursue photography and went around the country making images of winter scenes.  I compiled almost 1200 images in two months living in and utilizing “drive-away” cars or hitch-hiking to over 40 cities and towns from L.A. to Portsmouth, N.H. and Baltimore to Mt. Shasta.

But I was broke and tired, so I took a job as an electronics technician in Troy, Michigan at B&B Electronics, an importer of Japanese goods.  My primary job was tuning the coils on matched pair two-way radio systems, like walkie-talkies.  My only accomplishment was to develop a feedback technique that allowed us to tune the units aurally rather than using the ‘scope.  This cut the handling time to one-tenth of what it was taking.  Additionally, (as I was the only English speaking technician) I picked up a minuscule amount conversational Japanese language.

1970 was a year of extreme contrasts, beginning and ending working in the “dishroom” at Pitzer College.  I also found, quite by accident, that I was a fairly talented carpenter and designer.  But the most curious job was to be hired as the campaign manager for a fellow running for congress.  How and why I received this lucrative and responsible commission still remains, to this very day, a mystery to me.  It may be he was slightly off his rocker which is why I have spared his name.  I’m not sure if I accomplished much in the position but I did learn a great deal about the workings of politics, advertising and demographics and did lecture three times to political science classes at a very prestigious southern California university; my first time teaching.  I felt quite comfortable and useful teaching despite being younger than the members of the classes.

In 1971 I went back to the Courier and Hole Publishing so that I could have the time to begin writing.  I and a fellow named Murray Gilkeson produced a three hundred page collaborative novel as an experiment in “stream of consciousness”; some parts are actually and surprisingly, quite good.  I also worked as chauffeur and assistant to Richard Chase, the story-teller, musicologist and sociologist.  For “Uncle Dick” I was able to assist and participate in grade-school tours around the state, was a member and dancer in his English country dance troop and was a Morris dancer in a dance group.  I learned about story-telling and oral histories.

In ’72 I joined the South West Forest Fire Fighters Association.  Over the next 3 years I was on over 180 fires.  Though my primary job was to drive the Fire Bus with the crews to the fire line for a contractor, J.D. Martinez Jr., I also worked directly for the Forest Service in temporary positions.  I think I have done just about every job defined in the field: I worked the line with pulaski and shovel, driven ‘dozers and fire trucks, manned pumps, worked supply, been a communications and logistics officer, radio operator and dispatcher and twice was Fire Boss.  I’ve been the responsible officer in charge of three emergency situations including mountain rescue, rioting fire crews, and a fire breakout.  It was a great job!

From ’72 through ’75 I was also a school bus driver for the Espanola School District.  It still amazes me that school bus drivers are the most demeaned (especially by pay) of all employees in schools and yet they have the most difficult, most responsible and most arduous of all jobs.  They carry as many passengers as most airliners without navigator, co-pilot or flight attendants.  They must control a group of children often equal to four or five classrooms in number without assistance or “I’ll send you to the office”.  They are the first counselor in the morning and the last confessor in the evening.  And they do all this and much more while maneuvering a large truck through the vagaries of traffic and weather, whew!  I was proud to be one of them.

In ’72 and ’73 I rode for Harold Law.  I did the jobs that a cowboy does; mended fence, wrangled doggies, branded and castrated, but, mostly I just rode, and sang, and thought.

I was also a partner with Idy Parker in Great River Crafts and Embudo Craft Gallery from ’72 through ’75.  Here I was a jeweler/silversmith and jewelry designer and the manager-supervisor of 17 employees.  Some of my work was recognized for awards in Santa Fe, El Paso and Tulsa.   Our jewelry was sold in boutiques throughout the US and Canada and by the May Company of department stores.  I learned the requirements of owning a small business and the methods and techniques to run one.  I take credit in tripling our sales in two years.

Also in ’73 I designed my first home, a small adobe for a fellow in Dixon, N.M.  The original drawings are in my architectural portfolio.

I moved to New York in ’76.  I had figured to finally go to college.  I had chosen Cooper Union to study architecture.  I hadn’t been in the city very long before I noticed that very few architects were employed as such and those who were drew light bulb schematics for one of a few big guys.  I had a cousin who happened to be a “big” architect and he explained the trials and tribulations (and the necessity to marry well) to achieve status and a firm.  I also noticed that many well employed “architects” were neither licensed nor formally schooled.  I decided to put college off and did a brief stint as a photography model. 

I opened a cabinet shop, Greene Street Cabinetmakers, with Brian Ruanavaara a student at the New School.  We employed 5 others at the time making cabinetry and furniture for the ‘new” SoHo.  Eventually, the shop was moved to Crosby Street and employed 22 woodworkers primarily making the realizations of my designs.

During ’76, ’77,  and ’78 I “audited” classes in Cultural Anthropology and feminist studies at the New School under the greats, Rayna Rapp, Stanley Diamond, Edmund Carpenter and others.  I completed all the course work for my Masters, and was offered it with the proviso that I pay for my schooling.  I didn’t.

My first big break came early, like most of those things I consider opportunity, this might be construed by others as disaster.  Shortly after moving to the city I was commissioned to restore a 19^th century bar and grill on Cleveland Place, in fact, the same bar shown in the movie “Mean Streets”.  I was nearing completion when it was fire bombed by the Mafia because the owners had failed to pay protection.  I lost everything, all my tools, a months wages, everything except the impression I had made on the neighborhood.  A wonderful plaintive and melancholy letter was written to the SoHo Weekly news about “the young carpenter” and his work.  I would someday like to thank whoever wrote it.

A few months later I was commissioned to design and make display furnishings for the new Makers Gallery on Spring St.  I met Craig Murray who was the director.  A few years later this exceptionally talented and capable fellow would be a partner.  Soon though I was commissioned by the Jordan-Volpe Gallery to design and construct an exhibition of pottery.  Not only did Rita Reif of the New York Times extol the wonders of my design in the Sunday Arts Section but my work was left handedly complimented in the Village Voice.  I tend to think my work was as much a part of the resurgence of “Arts and Crafts” as Mr. Jordan’s vision, Mr. Volpe’s incredible skills, Ms. Cathers connections or Ms. Bohdan’s effusive verbiage.

I did many galleries and exhibitions which are in my portfolio.  I also did almost all the engineering and did all the construction for the Museum of American Indian “Ancestors” exhibition and my design, without credit, became the basis of the exhibition at the California Academy of Sciences.  I also did design work for Frank Geary and Phillip Johnson on the Starr Building, though I doubt they know it.  I still have the drawings. And I contributed some input on the Lehman Library and Woods Hole.  I should credit my staff, especially two architects who worked for me, Janet Tomlinson and Dorcas Rohrs, whose exceptional talent made our work even more refined, and of course, Sam Clayton, an artist without peer.

My portfolio from this period has hundreds of private commissions from furniture to complete apartments. I also formed a design build company with two partners; Gusse, Crettier and Smozcynski.  Smozcynski and I worked together for many years from the beginning cabinet days through the job training.  He was, and is still, the most intelligent person I have had the honor to work with.

In ’79 Craig Murray and I formed Art Resources and we were commissioned to design and build the new gift shop for the Cathedral of St. John the Divine.  I jealously wish I had his artistic talent.  Following that I was asked to review a study by New Alchemy done for the Cathedral.  I was then appointed architect-in-residence and designed the Vance-Kennedy Peace Library.  Concurrent with this I managed a job training program with the Theater for the Forgotten, obtained a faculty position at Pratt Institute and kept pretty busy until 1982.

I determined with the birth of my first son to go into semi-retirement and bought a farmstead in Upstate New York.  I did a few more exhibitions, but, ’82, ’83 and ’84 were primarily spent with my sons raising cattle and making hay.  Foolishly, I allowed a couple to convince me to design their retirement home in southern Massachusetts.  They couldn’t find any builders.  Next I knew, I was back in business designing and building homes along the coast of Massachusetts and Rhode Island and actually licensed as a Construction Manager with a crew of 25.  I also opened a support office in Owego, The Owego Design Center for the interiors and a shop in partnership on Ludlow Street in New York.

’86 was a another disaster/opportunity year.  A client took advantage of a legal loophole, or actually the difference in Massachusetts law verses almost anywhere else, to the tune of $200,000 dollars.  This didn’t bankrupt me but did force me to close my business and engage in a five year federal suit to try and get my money back.  That was quite an education, both in the greedy evil heartedness of some folks, and an in depth, hands on, study of law and legal procedure. I learned how to do a removal, submit motions, request oral motions, write interrogatories, conduct a deposition, object and direct and cross.  In some ways these lessons gave me a greater understanding of the fabric of our society.

I went to work for a kitchen and bath outfit, PHD Design in Ithaca and did the things a kitchen and bath designer does.  I can’t say I took well to the bit, but I was a dutiful employee and in fairness I was given nearly partner status.  That job though came to an abrupt halt with an incapacitating injury.

I had kept a small office in New York which I shared with a computer consultant, Computer Services, where I ran a construction/project management company with John Kolp.  Not able to do much else I delved whole heartedly into providing these services to small construction companies and went back to designing apartment remodels for uptown clients.  I developed expertise in project management software and provided contract writing services as well.  Gusse and Kolp was a Thomas Bluebook listed firm.

In ’88 my co-renter ran into financial difficulties and I bought his business moving it Upstate.  The business was in two parts, the first customized accounting systems and systems add-ons and the second back-office services, membership services and database services.  I quickly brushed up my programming skills learning popular database languages such as dBase, Foxbase, and Foxpro, operating systems such as Unix, Xenix and MS-DOS and accounting systems like SBT and Accountmate.  On the back office side we cut back to one client the Qualitative Research Consultants Association.  For QRCA we did everything but executive management and the annual convention, including membership and dues, mailings and publication, reception and forwarding, the works.

In ’89 the computer business was growing by quantum leaps.  I went into partnership with Bill Coupe a “guru’s guru” and his Micro Applications company forming CS/MA, Computer Services/Micro Applications.  We became one of the largest suppliers of customized accounting and management system software, at one time with over 1400 clients.  It was at this time Microsoft asked us to be one of their certified partners.  The first 50 were by invitation including the likes of IBM, Xerox, and Apple and read like the crème of the fortune 500, except #46, CS/MA.  Today, there are 35-40,000 certified solution providers.

We were always on the “bleeding” edge.  That was our business failing, but both Bill’s and my personality demanded we do new, innovative and inventive processes.  Searching and finding the better way.  I think we have a lot of firsts to our credit.  I believe our X.25 automatic order processing we did for Mitsubishi/Caterpillar was the first “internet” fully automated business to business process.  I believe our Meta-object Programming Procedures as I presented to the National Science Foundation for our client Cornel University in ‘96 is nearly identical to the theory behind the just released Microsoft .NET.  I’m sure that our table based applications were the forerunners, a decade too soon, of current server based products.

In ’94 we went internet and became an ISP in ’95, Axua, Inc.  providing dial-up connections and internet hosting.  Once again Microsoft featured our company and profile in their internet initiatives, in fact I believe we were the first.  And once again, we were so far ahead of the curve it was difficult to sell some of our concepts on hosting and business usages for issues such as internet enabled resource planning and just in time purchasing, inventory control, online ordering and human resource tracking.  Even today some of those concepts are just coming into their own.

In ‘97 we designed a wireless network, what today would be called Wi-Fi for a natural gas storage and exploration company.

’98 was another crisis/opportunity year.  I suffered some major health problems.  By ’99 I felt it necessary to close the business.

In 2000 I began a new career as a writer and have produced a few thousand pages of short-stories, poems, journals and some novel and screen play concepts.  It’s now 2003 and I’m almost ready to start the “get published” game.  I also returned to photography.

2004 will see me open a portrait studio, slated to open January 12, and a gallery, for some of the 8,000 images I’ve made these past couple years.  I will also continue my volunteer work with the National Park Service.

That’s it so far.  If you have any questions or would like any in-depth information on any portion of this synopsis, or would like references, just e-mail me: greg@axua.com.