massive monkees day

 

Did you know Seattle is big in the world breakdancing scene? It's pretty much the opposite of the techy, online culture I associate with Seattle. It's in large part thanks to the Massive Monkees, the highly acclaimed dance crew that originated in Beacon Hill 30 years ago.

Massive Monkees Day — actually a weekend — is a breaking (as in breakdancing) competition hosted in Seattle on a more or less yearly basis, hosted by the It was hinted that this would be the last one — I hope it isn’t. Saturday was the semi-final round, and was open to the public at a block party in the Chinatown area.

I’ve sketched the faceted red arch of Hing Hay Park many times, but never seen it framing an event like this one. A crowd was gathered around a vinyl floor, where the individual footwork part of the competition was underway.

A few seated judges stared hard at the sneakered feet flying around the dance floor. I had no idea what they were looking for, and I was distracted by all the other athletic feats on display anyway.

Dancers flipped & inverted, their baggy t-shirts dropping open to reveal muscular torsos. They threw and twisted their hips in ways I have never before conceived. Bucket hats slid across the floor. Smiling in exertion, they jumped and gestured, daring their competition to best them. The crowd yelled & screamed in response to the most impressive moves. Reaction was involuntary and instinctive.

The ages competing ranged from about 10 to 50, and the kids competed alongside the adults. Part of the Massive Monkees’ philosophy is “Each one, teach one” - to instruct the next generation of dancers. The gathering at the park was almost all people of color, and Asian b-boys and b-girls appeared to make up the racial majority of participants.

The MC announced competitors from out of town — from Texas, Hawai’i, Boston, British Columbia, and Calgary. There were also some big names from Japan and Russia competing in the finals.

During an intermission in the action, I took out a few acrylic markers and sketched the scene in front of me. Using a brush pen, I tried to capture some of the characters in the crowd without being too obvious. For the dancer in the center, I took some pictures and used them as reference to add them in last — no way I could draw that fast!

A breaking competition is far from my usual circles, but I’m grateful I got that chance encounter in the park with these guys, and that I got a chance to spectate.

Although City of Seattle recognizes the Massive Monkees as a cornerstone of our artist culture, I’m not sure how much the general population here is aware of them. But now you are! I feel super proud of not only my city, but also my neighborhood in creating this undeniably cool bit of Seattle culture. 

 To see our hometown b-boys in action, I recommend watching this video. I dare you to tell me you aren't enthralled by them!

Overlook Landscaping

 

6/7/26 Waterfront Overlook Walk

A cruise ship was in, and soccer fans were already in town for the impending World Cup, which meant only one thing: Pike Place Market was more mobbed than usual on Sunday. Fortunately for USk Seattle, our outing focused on spacious Waterfront Overlook Walk, which feels unoppressive even when lots of people are enjoying this city gem.

After sketching there several times since it opened less than two years ago, what caught my attention this time was how lush all the landscaping has become. Lupine and many small floral bushes were blooming everywhere (which the bees seemed to appreciate). I decided to make the landscaping the “story” of my first Overlook visit of the summer (I anticipate more . . . some of my best-used tax dollars are here).

Sketching in the rain

It might have been prudent to cancel this morning's sketch outing at Hanwoori Korean Garden in Federal Way. But USk Tacoma had invited USk Seattle to attend. Rain was predicted, even thunderstorms. Also, it was time to celebrate USk Tacoma's 13th anniversary as their first sketch outing was June 7, 2013.

Several sketchers from Seattle came along with a few from the Tacoma group. We were a hardy bunch as it rained nearly the entire time. A few huddled together under the shelter of the roof of the garden gate. More were in the pagoda itself. And then a couple of us sketched from under umbrellas!

I was one of the sketchers sitting under an umbrella, painting a view of the gate. Sadly, the Federal Way city site doesn't have any information about this fairly new garden. I did find that Hanwoori means “we are one”. And that it was created in a partnership between the City of Federal Way and its sister city, Donghae, South Korea.

We ended early and a few people had already left. The Tacoma group posed with an anniversary poster.

Animal Heads and a Surprise at Sculpture Park

 

5/30/26 Ai Weiwei's Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads, Olympic Sculpture Park

After a long delay and much anticipation, Ai Weiwei’s monumental installation, Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads, officially opened at a community event May 30 at Olympic Sculpture Park. According to the Seattle Art Museum, “The works reconceive the 12 zodiac heads that decorated an 18th-century Qing imperial fountain before they were looted during the Second Opium War (1856–60). Seven are based on the original heads that have survived, and Ai researched and reimagined the five animals still missing to complete the zodiac.”

Lunch sketches

Despite the cool, cloudy morning, USk Seattle came out in full force to sketch the bronze animal heads, each standing 10 feet tall and weighing 1,500 pounds. I sketched different parts of it twice from different angles. Then later while eating lunch outside, I still had a good view of the sculptures, so I sketched a few more heads, this time with Jane in the composition.

Sponsored by SAM, the community event included live music and dragon dance performances by Wei Dai. The page below is a composite of Dai’s performance (lower right) and park visitors playing with long, colorful dragon streamers similar to the one Dai used.

Dragon dancer Wei Dai (lower right) and park visitors 

After lunch, I still had an hour before the throwdown, so I took a walk down to the waterfront. To my surprise, while I’d seen the fountain before, I discovered a figure in the fountain that I had never noticed. Not finding a placard, I had to do some online digging to learn about it, and it turned out to be an intriguing story:

Father and Son, a fountain with sculptures by Louise Bourgeois, was the result of a bequest to the city by a Seattle man, Stu Smailes. The avid art supporter stipulated in his will that the $1 million gift be used to build a fountain in Seattle. “The fountain(s) shall include one or more unclothed, life-size male figure(s) designed in the classical style, i.e.: realistic,” were the requirements, according to the Seattle Times.

Father and Son by Louise Bourgeois 

Eventually, the bequest was assigned to Seattle Art Museum, and Father and Son was installed at the western park entrance in 2005. According to Wikipedia, “The 15-foot fountain and sculpture depict a na    ked man and a naked boy reaching out to each other. At timed intervals, two separate sides of the fountain will either rise or fall to reveal or obscure one figure or the other.” Interestingly, I never saw the “son” appear the whole time I was sketching, and the water level didn’t seem to change.

The Wikipedia article goes on to say that “Father and Son is the first public sculpture in Seattle featuring nude figures. While the SAM’s statement on the artwork focuses on the emotional distance and vulnerability of the two figures, others in the local community saw the sculptures as overtly sexual and pedophilic.” I don’t recall any of this controversy from 2005 – and it took me more than 20 years to discover the figure!

One of many benefits of being an urban sketcher is all that I keep learning about my native city, one sketch at a time.

This Time, Lenin and the Bridge

 

5/23/26 Fremont Bridge and Lake Washington Ship Canal, Fremont neighborhood

Sketching in the Fremont neighborhood is always a game of “choose your icon.” The Troll, JP Patches & Gertrude, Lenin, Saturn, the Rocket (bonus points if you can get both Saturn and the Rocket in the same composition), the Fremont Bridge, the topiary dinosaurs – did I miss any? USk Seattle hit them all last Saturday on a cloudy afternoon.

Although I’ve sketched all of them multiple times, I picked an icon that I may not have sketched as often. It was breezy and chilly by the Lake Washington Ship Canal, but I wanted to start with a peek-a-boo view of the brilliantly blue Fremont Bridge.

After walking around Fremont for a while to warm up, I ended up at the statue of Lenin, where several other sketchers were already settled in at the former Soviet Union leader’s feet. Always a bit daunted by the formidable monument, I walked across the street for a more distant view (below). I chose a purple and green palette that would contrast strongly with Lenin’s red hand.

In fact, the red hand was just what I needed to fill the short time remaining until our throwdown, when the sun finally came out.

Statue of Lenin

Throwdown at Evanston Plaza

Inside Google

 

5/15/26 Sixth floor of Google's Valley Building, South Lake Union

Inclement weather is usually an urban sketching inconvenience, but last Friday it worked to our advantage (at least for some of us). Ikroop, a sketcher and Google employee, had invited USk to join her artist colleagues to sketch together at Lake Union Park. If the weather turned unpleasant, we had the option of going inside their office building a short walk away. Since we all agreed at the meetup that it was too cold and windy to sketch at the park, we took advantage of their invitation to take us inside.

Initially skeptical about what we would have to draw inside an office building, I was surprised – and impressed! In addition to sweeping views of Lake Union, Queen Anne Hill and downtown, the sixth floor employee lounge had colorful, cushy chairs, lots of tables, a visiting dog and even pinball machines.

We ended the sketch outing across the street at Flatstick Pub for a drink & draw. Sketching South Lake Union’s glassy buildings, I got to know a few new sketchers I hadn’t met before while enjoying my brew and snacks.

5/15/26 Flatstick Pub, South Lake Union

Google throwdown...

A small group of sketchers who were late for the initial meetup got left behind at the park. Hardy sketchers and good sports, they opted to sketch at Lake Union Park anyway and had their own throwdown!

...and simultaneous Lake Union Park throwdown!

Rare Himalayan Blue Poppies

Small group today, but the flowers are just GORGEOUS. Come down to Federal Way's Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden to see ALL KINDS of rhodies, but especially the rare Blue Himalayan Poppies that are blooming now. It's a beautiful serene spot with lots of trails to explore!

Thanks to Roxanne, Sharon and John for joining me in our merry band of sketchers!

Fishermen’s Terminal for USk Week

 

5/6/26 Fishermen's Terminal

For our second outing during International Urban Sketchers Week, USk Seattle chose Fishermen’s Terminal, which we think of as our inaugural site. A bit chillier and windier that day than I found comfortable, I ducked in and out of pockets of shelter from the wind (and found a boat aptly named Windswept).

I found small vignettes of fishing boats, the Fishermen’s Memorial Monument, and other nautical pieces to put together on the page. Floral arrangements were still in place in front of the memorial, where families gather each May to remember lost fishermen. Many names of fishermen who have died at sea are engraved in paving stones, and it’s always moving to see how many were very young.