A Zoo at the Seattle Aquarium

6/13/14 Northern fur seal and otters

Every citizen of Seattle under the age of 8 was at the Seattle Aquarium this morning, along with a handful of brave (or crazy) Friday sketchers. Someone exclaimed, “What a zoo!” and I disagreed; I visit Woodland Park Zoo frequently, and even on a sunny summer day, it isn’t nearly as crowded. I think today was the single most challenging sketching environment I’ve experienced so far, at least in terms of number of people at my elbows.

Yet when we spread out our sketchbooks to share two-and-a-half hours later, I was amazed by the wonderful sketches everyone had made – and by the number of pages I had managed to fill in my own sketchbook. Though not exactly leisurely or relaxing (to the contrary, I was on the verge of screaming), I can’t say it wasn’t a productive morning.

6/13/14 sea star tank

Lots of fish

Seahorses

Sea birds and a sea pen

Diaphonous and magical moon jellies