Pine Street’s Many Stories

 

6/22/25 Pine Street where it crosses over Interstate 5, downtown Seattle

When USk Seattle met at the top of Capitol Hill last month around the Starbucks Roastery, I took a walk down Pine Street across Interstate 5. That’s when I decided we needed to meet in that area someday, too. With the new Convention Center Summit and the old Paramount Theatre on the same block, The Pine/I-5 intersection has something to sketch in every direction, including down at the freeway. It’s as urban as urban sketching gets!

Sunday was the day, and it was my favorite type of USk location: A wide area to wander and capture small stories, like both the old and new Convention Centers; two patrol cars discussing a problem with two cars on I-5; and the historic Paramount Theatre (with both David and Jeff sketching it). Right on that busy Pine Street sidewalk, I unexpectedly spotted a long table surrounded by people swapping potted plants.

Running out of steam by mid-afternoon, I picked up a sugary treat at Voodoo Doughnut, coffee from Monorail Espresso and a chair at Monorail’s outdoor seating area facing Pine. For the center of urban Seattle, it was surprisingly calm and pleasant on a Sunday afternoon.

Although I didn’t sketch inside, I got a peek of the new Convention Center when I went in to use the restroom. A lobby mural reproduces Hopper’s Nighthawks. An art installation of native-inspired masks welcomes visitors at the Pine Street entrance. 

I love urban sketching – and I love urban urban sketching!

As urban as urban sketching gets!

Art installation at the Convention Center Summit entrance

Although it looks well-illuminated, I was surprised by how dark the Convention Center lobby seemed.

A mural-size reproduction of Hopper's Nighthawks fit in nicely in the dark lobby.