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In Memory of . . .
John Black
of Moscow, ID. Died at age 73.
OBITUARY
5/9/1949 - 3/26/2023
Submitted by Phil Riersgard (MHS '67)
John Stephen Black died peacefully Sunday, Mar. 26, 2023, at his home in Moscow, ID. He is survived by his wife Fiona with whom he shared 14 years of happy marriage. His only surviving family member is his sister Jane.
John was passionate about his interests. In the college days he loved mountain climbing. Among the mountain that he climbed, Mt. Rainer stands out. He didn't do it in a small way; think ice axe, ropes and rappelling down cliffs. He earned a degree of Art and Architecture from the U of I.
Most of his career he pursued design of one type or another, settling eventually on webpage development. This MHS website is one of his projects. Another was a project for Santana, the 60's Brazilian band that played at Woodstock.
While in college, one of the places he worked was a bike shop. His interest in bikes developed into a passion in his later years. The Latah Trail provided a place for his frequent rides. He acquired an assortment of bikes for different applications. He achieved his goal of having a custom made frame which he outfitted just the way he liked it. It was eye catching and suitable for a variety of surfaces. His enthusiasm for bikes was contagious and he helped friends purchase upgrades for their own use.
In the early days he followed Formula One car races. His interest in cycling lead to a love for bike races. He was watching a race when he died.
Submitted by Roger Slade (MHS '67) John and I were very close friends up to and through High School. After graduation John went on to study Architecture. When summer would arrive, John embarked on the research project of Dr. Gordon Snyder exploring high mountain water systems in the Idaho Primitive Area. They could only travel on horseback and spent at least a month at a time camping along the avenues of their exploration.
In 1975 John and I embarked on a decade of design collaboration ultimately forming the firm of Rockwood, Mowrey, Slade, and Black (RMSB Design).
RMSB Design developed creative features for the U of I's consolidation of all food-services facilities on the campus into one primary facility in the Wallace Complex. For that two-year project we received an award for the Best Design of a College Food-Service Facility in an International Competition sponsored by Institutions Magazine. After that John designed a new "dining room", the Blue Bucket, in the University's Student Union Building. The most creative feature of the design was (and maybe still is) the doors. John designed many architectural details such as lighting, facades for several architectural endeavors. One such project was the Hoff Building in Boise (the old Boise Hotel) where John's innovative solutions in original bronze castings were outstanding.
RMSB Designed moved the studios to a larger facility above the Hodgins Building where we continued to grow and where John remained for the rest of his life. We thought it was very cool that in order to get to our studio one had to use the only escalator in town at the Idaho First National Bank.
I have always considered John Black to be the most talented designer I have ever worked with! Later I worked briefly with Cambridge Seven in Massachusetts and John could easily have flourished there and become known as a top designer. He was very proud of the fact that he was the only non-Italian ever to be commissioned by the prestigious company, Cassina of Italy, to design a commercial lighting system.
Our last project collaborated on was the Downtown Moscow Revitalization Project providing design services to the engineers, landscape architects, and architects entrusted to the project.
I look back on that period as amazing in that we were able to survive in such a small community engaging in a commercial enterprise that allowed so many options for our creative energies.
John influenced me not only in my design pursuits but, particularly in our formative years, in the way he approached problem solving for, in my humble opinion, that is what John should be remembered for, A Consummate Creative Problem Solver.
Submitted by Gordon Snyder I met John in 1971. He helped me get thru my 6 years Graduate School with lab work and field trip logistics. After that, he continued contributing to our Forestry Sciences Water Research until 1978 when the project ended.
As you can imagine working in the Lab and then for weeks long field work, we got to know each other as brothers. Plus, he drove a BMW 320i and I drove a Porsche, so there was that car nut bond.
He became a friend that taught me about other ways to listen to music and look at life. I loved our hanging out times! Yellow Brick Road will always be the song that binds us.
John was > A Thinker > A Music Lover > A RockClimber > A Backpacker > An Artist and Designer, and always did everything with a unique logical theme.
Because he was a Rock Climber his approach and designs had simplicity and balance. You could just sense it. John designed and made my Office furniture that I have used since I started business in 1981 and every day since. It's still Perfect.
Most importantly, John was as Sensitive and Honest as anyone I've ever met. Whenever we met up over the years, I could always know he was the same guy and we could pick up with today's life events.