WW Sketchcrawl 51, Earth Day and the Procession of the Species

It was a convergence weekend, the Fifty-first Worldwide Sketchcrawl fell on the same day as one of Olympia's best weekends of the year - Arts Walk, Luminary Procession and the Procession of the Species. 

The weekend begins with the closing of the main downtown streets on Friday night, stores display artwork from elementary school aged-classrooms to seasoned gallery artists. Kids draw with chalk in the streets, musicians play in the doorways and gift shops, Jugglers and fire throwers take over the intersections. 

Kids and adults blow bubbles in front of Washington Center for the Performing Arts.

Jules the Juggler dominates the intersection of 5th and Washington

Then the luminary procession, representing the fifth element, starts when it's dark. The paper lanterns, hand-made by the community members  who carried them, lit up the night like jewels dancing in the dark. 

Jewels in the night - the luminaries lend an element of magic and represent the fifth element: Spirit.

Saturday afternoon, the Procession of the Species wends it's way through town, with representation from the other four elements: earth, air, fire and water. Hence trees, slugs, birds of all feathers, the sun, fish and wales and even a wave rolls through town. 

Locals try their hand at chalk artistry as the procession lead approaches

The Sun, representing the element of Fire, leads the way flanked by batik wind-socks

A narwhale, octopuses, a flamingo and our college mascot, the infamous geoduck  are just a few representing the Water element.

It's a weekend of fun and celebration; color and light, music and dance.  You can read even more about the Procession and see more sketches on my blog, Olysketcher. 

Amazon’s Spheres

4/29/16 Amazon's spheres

Spheres, domes, bubbles, fly eyeballs – they’ve been called many things by locals and tourists alike. (Native “of a certain age” that I am, I can’t help but think of the Bubbleator from the Seattle World’s Fair.) They are definitely a head-turning addition to the north downtown area that is otherwise a canyon of mostly boring, glassy highrises. The spheres are part of Amazon’s brand-new campus of buildings. According to GeekWire, “the unusual buildings will be filled with more than 300 plants, including full-grown trees. It’s designed as a place for Amazon workers to meet, hangout and share ideas.”

After seeing the partially constructed domes in photos and David Chamness’s sketches, I figured I’d better get over there if I wanted to catch them still under construction. Strange as they are, they look quite cool compared to all the ordinary buildings around them. I predict they will be among the most-sketched structures around here in the summer months because they sure are fun to draw! 

Couldn't make the last sketch outing so...

It was that beautiful Sunday and Sketch Out/Loud was on my mind.  So I while I was in Tacoma Wright park seemed like a fitting spot. The park, covering 27 acres was, designed by Bavarian landscape architect Edward Otto Schwagerl, back in the late 1800's. 

The jewel-like W. W. Seymour Botanical Conservatory presides over the park. It's not-quite-round dome is built with 3500 panes of glass. The copper cupola tops it off like a crown. 

Broadway Light Rail Station

This month's sketch outing was a wonderful sunny spring day that was a joy to be sketching outside.
I decided to experience the new portion of the light rail from Husky Stadium (where I parked and caught the train) up to Capitol Hill and the Broadway Station.  It was easy and a quick way to get to Capitol Hill without the trouble of finding a spot to park around Broadway.

I started with a sketch of the new light rail station where some of us met.  A few went to one of the other two entries to the station.  A little confusing to those of us unfamiliar with the station.

 I liked that the new station was nestled next to this older apartment building.  The figure to the right of the tree trunk was Frank sketching the station from a little different vantage point. 

I was going to move to another location when I realized that the new street-car was sitting and waiting for its return trip back to the International District.  The yellow color was so wonderful that I knew I wanted to sketch it before it left.  I only had a few minutes and then it was off.  Before I knew it the pink car arrived and so I decided to sketch that one too.  I had more than five minutes for this sketch because I started it right when it finished its run.  After our meet-up, I went inside the station and painted the wall mural by Ellen Forney called "Walking Fingers"  Many great colors today!

My friend Orlando, a sketcher from work, had his camera with him.  He got a passing gentlemen to take the group picture.  A few had already taken off, so the group seems a little light.

WW Sketchcrawl 51

 

I went down to Shilshole Marina in Seattle today to check out a racing yacht on a 40,000 mile round the world race. It is getting some well deserved rest after a trip across the Pacific.

Something in the Air at Pike Place Market-WW Sketch Crawl #51

A fishmonger shouts and a 30 pound salmon flies through the air across a mountain of ice and is deftly caught by the man behind the counter. A semicircle of onlookers holds cameras and smart phones overhead, capturing the spectacle.

I had to sketch the "flying fish" action in increments: the hands and fish, the face, the swirl of the white lab coat.

The scent of fresh, hot sticky buns wafts through the air as a man in a silver white ponytail and a floppy hat rolls up his sleeves. He flicks his hands with a flourish and plays modern classical music at his piano on wheels.

Across the street a wide shadowy freight doorway reveals a technicolor display of spring flowers. A flower vendor's head seems to float among the fragrant bouquets wrapped in white paper.

After sharing our sketches in the atrium and getting a group photo outside by the newsstand, some of us sketched our way through lunch at the Sound View Cafe. 

Upper right: Marvin and Tina sketching at lunch. I had the BBQ Salmon on Focaccia (LR)

We had our choice of all our typical Pacific Northwest seafood; salmon chowder, clam chowder, barbecued salmon, or the seafood pasta  extravaganza. The pasta extravaganza has king salmon, tiger prawns, halibut, crab meat pan sautéed and served over pasta with choice of marina, pesto or alfredo sauce PLUS soup and salad bar! Tempting, I know, but I wanted to stay sharp for more sketching in the afternoon. As you see, the barbecued salmon sandwich was quite sufficient. I'm having the other half for lunch tomorrow.

Adding the final sketches of the day to my accordion sketchbook over thick hot aromatic Turkish coffee.

I would say that Seattle provides more than enough inspiration to last all the way through this 51st World Wide Sketch Crawl Day.

My first ever sketches with Seattle Urban Sketchers were sketched the market during the workshop with Frank Ching, Gail Wong, and Gabi Campanario.

Pike Place Market for 51st World Wide SketchCrawl

4/23/16 Pike Place Market

Our five-day “summer” may be over, but the tourist season is just beginning at the Pike Place Market. Urban Sketchers Seattle pushed our way through the crowds with the best of ‘em as we sketched one of our most iconic locations for the 51st quarterly World Wide SketchCrawl.

4/23/16 Aaron busking in front of the
original Starbucks.

My first self-assignment of the day was to make a sketch or two for Liz Steel’s online SketchingNow Edges class. I knew exactly which scene I wanted to do: That famous Seattle postcard, the Public Market Center sign. This sketch is a simplified version of the composition I did a couple of years ago from a slightly different angle.

After that I just wandered around the Market, enjoying the energetic bustle, and stopped for a couple of buskers along the way. While I waited for the others in the Atrium for our sketchbook sharing, I caught a few people having lunch with the Sasquatch.

4/23/16 more buskers

4/23/16 Sasquatch in the Atrium

Sketchbook sharing

Look! I'm finally taller than Michele!

Capitol Hill Station

The Central Link system is finally beginning to mature, with this stop at Capitol Hill and the next one at UW being added recently, and future ones at the University District, the Roosevelt neighborhood, and Northgate on the way.

Dicks on Broadway

I took the opportunity at today's sketch outing at the new Capitol Hill Light Rail Station to draw the Seattle landmark Dicks Drive-In on Broadway. My first husband was a manager at this Dicks location circa 1980-81 and I spent many a night sitting in my car in this parking lot. I have not eaten meat for many years and it was sitting in my car in this very lot in 1981 when I ate my last-ever cheese burger. 

Summer on Capitol Hill

4/17/16 Dick's Drive-in

Some say this is climate change. Others say it’s just another El Niño. Seventy-two degrees and a clear blue sky? I don’t care if it’s April – I call it summer! We couldn’t have picked a better day for Urban Sketchers Seattle to initiate outdoor sketching season!

I started heading for Cal Anderson Park, where I had left behind a few ideas for things to sketch when the Friday sketchers were there last week. But as I crossed Broadway, I looked over my shoulder at the Dick’s Drive-in sign and decided to do that first before the lunch crowd got thick. Parking my stool at the edge of Dick’s lot, I had a great view of that familiar orange sign against the blue sky.

Next I wandered over to Seattle Central Community College’s campus, where Charles Smith’s Park Sculpture caught my eye, along with the long, lean shadows of the trees surrounding it.

4/17/16 Park Sculpture by Charles Smith

I had just enough time before the sketchbook sharing for a couple more quick ones of the Broadway Farmers Market. I associate farmers markets with summer, so I was surprised to see that it was open already. Then I remembered that it’s one of few Seattle markets open year-round. Like I said, today it might as well have been summer!

4/17/16 flower vendor

4/17/16 Broadway Farmers Market

April Monthly Sunday Outing - Capitol Hill Light Rail Station

Sunday, April 17
Capitol Hill Light Rail Station
West entrance
1827 Broadway
Seattle

10 am - meet just inside the station entrance where you would buy tickets

This date aligns with April's SKETCH OUT/LOUD, a month-long celebration of landscape architecture started by Urbansketcher, Richard Alomar. Find out more about SKETCH OUT/LOUD and see what others have posted on the SKOL2016 TagBoard.

SKOL2016 at Roozengaard

Among all the famous sites visited during the annual tulip festival in Mt. Vernon and La Conner, Washington, Roozengaard is an outstanding example as a producer and for it's tulip display garden. I recently enjoyed sketching there on a rare sunny day last week. Although finished sketches are enjoyable to view, it's always nice to see the work in progress. Scroll down to view my accordion book sketches in reverse order, from the end and all the way back to the beginning.

The finished sketches of the day. 4.7.16.  Individual sketches shown in more detail on the replay at the 57min mark. Here on Katch.

I wanted to engage in the Sketch Out Loud Project along with other artists around the world this month. "The goal of SKO/L is to help celebrate Landscape Architecture and World Landscape Architecture Month with a wide audience of sketchers to promote on location sketching as a way to observe and document the landscape."  Learn more about SKOL2016 here.

Roozengaarde provides both landscape and architectural subjects. My final accordion sketchbook spread includes a sketch of the windmill. Trophy shot taken on a warm, sunny bench nearby.

As I sat on a bench sketching in the northwest corner of the display garden, a bee came to view my progress. It hovered for a few moments, so close that I could see it pivot in flight left and right from page to  page.  After it buzzed away, I sketched it in place exactly where it had been hovering, took this photo and continued my work in progress. 4.7.16
Roozengaard

Sketching Rainbows

As we normally do during winter and shoulder seasons, we planned an indoor venue for today's Urban Sketchers Seattle ad hoc outing.  However, we had a taste of summer.... bright sun and over 70 degrees.  We met inside Elliot Bay Books on Capitol Hill.  But nearly everyone decided to sketch outside.

I had my eye on the rainbows.  These weren't the rainbows in the sky after rain.  These are rainbow crosswalks.  They were painted in June 2015 in celebration of Gay Pride week.  "The city picked locations by working with community members to pinpoint heavily used streets and spots that have been sites of assault based on sexual orientation, Murray [Seattle Mayor] said."




The first one is on the walk to Blick's art store.  I also liked their paint tube and palette sign! 



The second location I spotted while doing a walk around after having arrived early.  It's near the Comet Tavern.



We shared sketches at a table in the Oddfellows cafe inside  Elliot Bay books to share  A few of us stayed for lunch there. 

Sunshine and Shades on Capitol Hill

4/8/16 Broadway & Pine streetcar stop

4/8/16 Cal Anderson Park

Urban Sketchers Seattle’s Friday group had planned to meet at Elliott Bay Books this morning, just in case the weather turned out bad. As much as I like the book shop, it couldn’t compete with our lucky weather – 73 and sunny with a breeze as gentle as June. As most of us did, I opted to sketch outdoors.

On a day like today, I could be sketching dog poo (as at least one of us did!) and be happy. You can imagine my near-ecstasy to finally sketch a Seattle streetcar, which I’d been wanting to do for quite a while now. Having ridden one just last week, I knew the trolley stopped for less than a minute at each stop, so I had to have a strategy. I took my time drawing the shelter and power lines and even painted the sky. When the next streetcar pulled up, I grabbed a fat brush pen to roughly capture its shape and a few details, then splashed on some paint after it was long gone.

4/8/16 light rail awesomeness

Next I walked over to Cal Anderson Park, where the conical fountain caught several sketchers’ eyes (though we all wondered why we’ve never seen it with water). Since I was nearly looking into the sun, I decided to keep this sketch monochrome, but I couldn’t resist another opportunity to point out that blue, blue sky.

With just those two sketches, I would have gone home happy, but my favorite sketch of the day? This guy I caught on the light rail wearing awesome flip-up shades!

A Show Of Urban Sketches at Seattle's Irwin's Neighborhood Bakery in Wallingford.

 

The Anchored Ship, Ballard

In the movie, Good Will Hunting, Matt Damon's character says going out for coffee is as arbitrary as going out for a handful of caramels.
But it feels odd to sit for an hour or two drawing in a coffee shop eating caramels.

At Irwin's Neighborhood Bakery in Wallingford, for the month of April, I have a show of Urban Sketches drawn on location at coffee shops and cafés around Seattle.

The Bounty, Stone Way and 45th

Café Umbria, Pioneer Square

Vios Café in Third Place Books on 65th.

Planet Java Café, Pioneer Square

Planet Java Café, Pioneer Square (again)