Not-So-Festive in Wallingford

 

12/7/25 Fuel Coffee, Wallingford neighborhood

Wallingford Center used to be a thriving retail center housed in the historic Interlake Elementary School building. It’s been going downhill for a while now with fewer and fewer shops and cafes, but USk Seattle has met there nearly every winter because the interior is spacious, cozy and, around the holidays, festive.

Sadly, we were disappointed to find that it wasn’t even decorated this year. Since I’ve sketched there numerous times, I took a walk through the Wallingford neighborhood to find an alternative. Fuel Coffee has window seating looking out on a strip of quintessential Wallingford buildings, so I settled in there with a Cortado. Patrons around me were having interesting conversations that I couldn’t help overhearing. A new pastime: urban eavesdropping. 😉

Meanwhile, most other sketchers found plenty to sketch inside and outside Wallingford Center, festive or not!

Warm and Dry at Wallingford Center

 

12/9/23 Wallingford Center

View of N. 45th Street from Chocolati

“All-day rain, 100% precipitation” said my weather app. Ya think? For once, it was accurate. Despite the downpour outside, USk Seattle stayed dry inside Wallingford Center, which has become a winter mainstay for us. Although it’s technically a retail center, it’s deserted all year round, even during the holidays. Nicely decorated with trees, wreaths and stockings, it was quiet except for the music, and we enjoyed having the place to ourselves.

Before settling in there, though, I took a short, soggy walk through the Wallingford business district and then ducked into Chocolati, which makes the best mochas in town. Grabbing a great window seat, I sketched the buildings across the street and a man in the opposite window seat (at left and below).

Fellow patron at Chocolati

Nourished by the mocha, I made my way back to Wallingford Center and wandered around a bit. I don’t usually attempt large, interior views because I don’t want to work on all that perspective, but I thought I’d give it a shot this time (top of post). Without getting fussy with measurements, I just eyeballed the perspective and focused on values. Despite the obvious complementaries, I’ve never blended red and green together this way, but the color mixing I’ve been learning with watercolors has made me more adventurous with watercolor pencils, too. Ho, ho, ho – a festive combo!

Quiet Sketch Reportage: Seattle Trees

 

7/23/23 Luma, a culturally significant cedar in Wedgwood, and an idle excavator on the adjacent property.

8/3/23 This healthy Douglas fir growing where 
a housing development will be built was cut down
11 days after I sketched it. Maple Leaf neighborhood.

While many of us may think that “sketch reportage” involves being in the trenches on a battlefield (as Richard Johnson, former Washington Post artist, became well known for) or participating in large public rallies, it can be quieter, too. This summer Gabi Campanario, editor of the online publication On the Spot, gave me an opportunity to report on a tree that had captured the hearts of Seattle. Named Luma by its supporters, the 200-year-old Western Red Cedar was slated to be cut down to make room for construction of a housing development.

I’m fortunate to live in a city where trees are a prominent part of the urban landscape, and I always enjoy including trees in my urban sketches (especially when utility poles, wires and other human-made features are involved). Working on Luma’s story, however, gave me a much greater appreciation for the sketch reportage process – that it’s much more than just the fun of urban sketching as I have always known it.

In addition, I learned much about my subject matter: Mature trees like Luma are being cut down at an alarming rate all over Seattle, especially in less affluent neighborhoods. Living a comfy, privileged life in Maple Leaf, I had understood the term “climate justice” only peripherally. Suddenly I was becoming aware of how much is at stake when trees that take a century to grow are eliminated from the landscape. The impact is socio-economical as well as environmental.

8/14/23 In the Roosevelt neighborhood, a resident had ordered this 100-year-old Deodar cedar to be cut down to accommodate a new plumbing line. Tree activists gathered on the morning of the scheduled cutting to raise awareness among neighbors.

Using information I’m learning from the organization Tree Action Seattle, I’m trying to sketch as many threatened trees as I can, especially those near my own neighborhood. The numbers are staggering – I can’t sketch fast enough, and sometimes I’m too late. But every tree I sketch has become an opportunity to express gratitude to all trees that silently provide service to all of us every day.

8/23/23 While technically protected by city code, a heritage yellowwood tree in Wallingford is in danger of being damaged during construction of a multi-level townhouse on the property. Fewer than 500 heritage trees -- of exceptional size, form or rarity -- still exist in Seattle.  

9/8/23 This redwood was planted in the 1930s by Green Lake Elementary School students. Fencing supposedly protects it from nearby construction activities, but the fencing does not comply with city code, and the tree's roots may be injured. City officials are aware of the non-compliance but are not enforcing the code.

9/9/23 Tree Action Seattle informed concerned citizens about this block of trees slated to be cut down in Shoreline. Unfortunately, I couldn't get there before the cutting. Fliers urging neighbors to voice their concern still hung from the stumps.

Historic Seattle/USk Workshop and Good Shepherd Center

Michele Cooper's urban sketching workshop collaboratively presented with Historic Seattle

When Historic Seattle invited Urban Sketchers Seattle to collaborate in presenting a sketching workshop, the partnership was a good fit. Members of Historic Seattle, a nonprofit organization committed to the preservation of Seattle’s historic landmarks, love old buildings just like sketchers do. And Good Shepherd Center, the first project that Historic Seattle worked to save and then manage for community events, was an ideal location for Michele Cooper’s popular First Steps in Visual Journaling USk workshop.

Michele’s students had a fun morning learning the basics of sketching. Then in the afternoon, an optional sketchcrawl at the Center and Meridian Park was an opportunity to introduce her students to an actual outing with the rest of us.

The outing featured many sketchable attractions at Good Shepherd Center and Meridian Park, including the historic Seattle Landmark building itself, a playground, gazebo, sculptures and lots of shrouded apple trees protected from insects in this pesticide-free park. Once I arrived, however, I learned that the Great Wallingford Wurst Festival was just a couple of blocks away! I’m not a fan of wurst, but I am a fan of small community festivals (especially “great” ones), so I couldn’t resist.

As Jane and I walked toward St. Benedictine School, where the wurst family event has been held annually for 35 years, the church’s tower called to me as an ideal exercise in graphite. I had my pencil and sketchbook out, ready to go, but then rockabilly music from the festival called to me even more loudly. Forget the tower – I had more fun sketching this group of lively musicians.

9/22/18 Entertainers at the Great Wallingford Wurst Fest

After hanging out at the wurst fest longer than I had intended, watching kids win prizes at the flamingo toss and other sports, I hurried back to the Good Shepherd Center. With only 20 minutes until the throwdown, I went out to the back veranda, where the columns cast stripes of shadows in the late-afternoon sun.

Many thanks to Historic Seattle for opening the Center to USk Seattle!

9/22/18 Good Shepherd Center's veranda

A Great Turnout at the Wallingford Center

We had a terrific turnout of about 22-24 people to sketch at the Wallingford Center today. Guest hosts Kathleen Keckler and myself (Sue Heston) managed to herd 18 down to the central staircase for the group photo, but I know we lost a few on the way! There were also 5 or 6 new and newish sketchers, so Welcome!
It was a chilly morning, not quite drizzling, but several people sketched outside anyway. I settled on this view of the main entrance with it's graphic white columns and black trim. Those doors lead directly into Trophy - a decadent cupcake shop which several of us got lured into. Don't say you weren't warned!

Notes From Underground

As part of my New Year's Resolutions and efforts towards general well-being, I'm on a bit of a tech-sabbatical. I deleted Facebook and Messenger from my phone and rarely check my email. It has been a welcome relief reconnecting with the real world and my flesh-and-blood friends in real time.

I haven't slowed down on the drawing however, and have some catching up to do on posting, so here are a few drawings from the last month.

I took my On Location students from Gage Academy to Wallingford Center and drew this scene as a demo. I took a dozen in-progress photos as I worked but I'll spare you all but one.

I'm often asked about my "no pencil" policy, and for the sake of transparency here is the kind of laborious and pains-taking pencil plan I create before inking. As you can see, a long time was spent on this stage (about 30 seconds).

Another scene drawn at Wallingford Center, completed in short bursts between consulting one-on-one with my students who were scattered around the building.

It's a welcoming location where I'll also be teaching my 10 x 10 class on St. Patty's Day.











    













The class also visited King Street Station with the assignment of finding a viewpoint with detail and depth, and to use atmospheric perspective to suggest distance.

Stimson-Green Mansion is good for students interested in architecture, but the rooms are dimly lit. The spaces with the most natural light tend to be the bathrooms and the kitchen- not the most historic of settings.

In my drive to get students to put down their pencils and draw directly in ink, I did this quick silly drawing of a librarian at Suzallo Library. I wanted to show that a wobbly drawing done as a modified blind contour isn't fatal. I was grateful that the librarian seemed unself-conscious about me staring at her for 20 minutes while I inked my way through this bland setting, trusting that my undisciplined pen lines would add up to something.



 

And the US Bank building corporate arch-thingie, where I was gently hassled by a security guard who asked me to put my chair back and move along.

If you'll be in Georgetown anytime during March or April, I'll have a show of a dozen large color drawings (17x23) at All-City Coffee. Not technically urban sketches, but using the same technique:

Good Shepherd Center in August

I am a little behind, and just getting around to posting some sketches from last month with the Friday Ad Hoc group. Back in August Seattle Urban Sketchers went to the Good Shepherd Center in Wallingford, which is part historic preservation, part school, part public park, community garden and city offices. On a hot summer day it was a busy spot with lots to sketch. I enjoyed sketching the old orchard trees, and gave myself a perspective challenge with the view of the courtyard below.

Zoka's in Tangletown near Greenlake.

Since moving a mile south of our old place, Zoka's has become our morning stop on the 2-mile walk to the gym. They've already memorized our orders, and often give us multiple punches on our frequent-flyer cards. Most importantly, the music is low-key and the atmosphere library-like, though the many bookshelves are oddly empty.
I drew the interior years ago with the Sketch Pistols, another Seattle area drawing group.

Wallingford and 45th

Time did not permit the trip to join you in Tacoma. I spent a beautiful afternoon studying what makes 45th such a great place to walk. Tree lined streets, cross walks, storefronts and on street parking have a lot to do with it but Chocolati and Molly moons don't hurt a bit!

Sea Monster Lounge and Rain Sushi

Last night we had a chance to go out.  Here are the sketches I did.

Sea Monster Lounge and Rain

Sea Monster Lounge

Rain Sushi

Essential Baking Company Bakery

Went to Essential Baking Company Bakery this morning and met fellow urban sketcher Beth there. Had a nice chat and was able to do a sketch of the space.  What a wonderful place for coffee and a muffin.