Nine years ago, when OSU women’s basketball coach Jim Foster and his wife Donna were lured to Columbus from their family home perched high on a ridge in the hills of Tennessee, they decided to accompany their physical move with a mental shift. The couple’s two sons, Christian and Andrew, were in their early 20s and wouldn’t be making the move, so it was time for Jim and Donna to put their own residential wish lists front and center. Fortunately, the Fosters have never had much trouble knowing exactly what they want when it comes to picking out a house. They’ve moved multiple times in their 36 years of marriage. Sometimes a new coaching position was the impetus, and sometimes the Fosters just happened upon a place that caught their eye—maybe on a walk through the neighborhood, or while glancing through the real estate section of the newspaper. “We just always look at different places,” says Donna. “We’re always ready to move.”
“It’s just what we do,” adds Jim.
When the Fosters first came to Columbus they were hoping to take a contemporary twist on their first empty nest by purchasing a downtown loft. Not finding what they wanted at the time, they settled in a charming cottage in German Village. A few years later on a City Hop walking tour of downtown Columbus, Donna got a glance of the Buggyworks lofts complete with wide open spaces, exposed brick walls, high beamed ceilings, hardwood floors, and loads of natural light. Jim took a look later and the couple was ready to move once again.
The Fosters purchased the loft in the spring of 2007, and while waiting for their cottage to sell they rented it out. Their tenants left behind a couple of apropos items when the Fosters finally took possession—a giant “GYM” sign and four basketball hoops.
Those mementos still hold a prominent spot in the Foster home amidst their striking collection of contemporary furniture and original artwork. Intimate clusters of chairs, tables and sofas define several different living areas within the space in a sophisticated, yet understated manner. But it’s the artwork that steals the show.
Large, color-drenched abstracts hold court in prominent positions within the home. Smaller pieces find their own space in powder rooms and over entry hall tables. Heirloom pieces done by Jim’s father (also Jim Foster) grace the guest room walls. The Fosters often celebrate vacations, anniversaries and birthdays with the purchase of a piece of meaningful artwork.
Does the couple agree on every piece of art? Usually, they say, but if not, they work through it. Recently the coach purchased a piece by Randall LaGro for Donna’s birthday having very little doubt that she would love it—and she does.
Several items in the couple’s collection, including some Sol Halabis and a couple of large abstracts by Robert Livsey Wells, were purchased locally at Muse Gallery in German Village.
“Jim and Donna are two of the most wonderful people I know,” says Hali Robinson, manager at Muse Gallery. “They have a passion for everything in life, including art. They have a great eye for lush and daring artwork and are not afraid to buy exactly what they like. Some people are hyper focused on matching artwork to couches, lamps, or tables, but the Fosters buy artwork because they love it, react to it, and encompass it.”
When asked why he is passionate about art, Jim says, “You see something a little different every time you look at it.”
Interestingly enough that’s also the reason he finds his current home so appealing. “When the light changes in here,” he says, “you see the space with a different perspective.”
Donna claims they use every inch of the 2,600-square-foot space—most of which is one common area. Only the master and guest bedrooms, two and a half baths and a few generous closets are tucked away.
“I love being able to look out at the wide open spaces,” she says. “It’s unlike our previous home where we sat in our family room most of the time. Here, we use this entire space.”
During occasions when the pair hosts intimate dinner parties, Donna, an accomplished cook, takes charge in their streamlined, but well-equipped kitchen.
Recently when the Fosters decided to host Master Chef Hartmut Handke and his wife Margot, friends asked the couple incredulously, “You’ve invited Chef Handke for dinner?”
Donna kept a “don’t try to outdo the chef” mentality and kept things simple preparing fresh salmon from The North Market on the grill.
“I wasn’t nervous, because I know I can cook,” she says. “But I didn’t know at the time that he doesn’t care for salmon.”
Luckily Margot called on the drive home and asked for Donna’s recipe because her husband “hasn’t stopped talking about the salmon.”
Photos of Christian, 32, and his wife April with their children Oliver and George who live in Athens, Georgia, and Andrew, 30, who lives in Bluff, Utah, are liberally peppered throughout the home. When the gang comes to visit, the loft turns into a model of efficient space planning. A heavy curtain near the opening to the guest room provides a level of privacy. The master bedroom’s oversized closet is the perfect spot for a crib, creating a dark and quiet “baby cave” of sorts, and a grey sofa converts to one more bed if needed.
In fact, efficiency is what Donna is all about. She’s a bit of a self-proclaimed neat freak. Clutter is not hidden away in this space. There is no clutter. Everything is necessary and carefully placed. File folders with artists’ bios can be found in seconds, should a visitor want to know more about a particular piece of art. Even the closets are tightly organized with shoes stored in original boxes and clothes hung or folded with military precision.
Jim shares that Donna never irons because she immediately folds clothes from the dryer with no time for wrinkles. His wife admits that they do indeed own an iron for those times when her mother visits from Philadelphia and requires one.
When asked if this type of fastidious housekeeping is tough to uphold the coach replies, “It’s pretty easy, there’s a bin for everything.” Plus, he adds, they finally moved into a place that lends itself to Donna’s style.
There’s no doubt the Fosters are passionate about many things: art, travel, books, wine, and basketball, though not necessarily in that order. A cause especially close to Donna’s heart is Kids ‘n Kamp, a Columbus-based non-profit support group for families touched by childhood cancer. She serves as co-chair of one of the organization’s primary fundraisers, the Celebrity Quilt Auction which is held every fall on the OSU campus.
The Fosters admittedly are itching to move again. No definite plans are in place. But one thing is certain—they won’t be moving back to a conventional house. Jim doesn’t miss shoveling in the winter or mowing in the summer. “Grass and snow are things that we have passed,” he says.
When asked what they look for when they select a new home, their answer is similar to their philosophy of purchasing art. “I don’t know what we look for,” says Donna. To which Jim adds, “We just know what we like.”
Are you a fan of The Ohio State University? You’d probably love to kick back and catch a game in this OSU man cave.
