May Gathering - Seattle Chinese Garden

Two sketches done at this month's Urban Sketcher's event. It feels so good to get a bit of a sunburn after all this rain. 

Pen, ink and wash in a Moleskine watercolor book.

Chinese Garden - Seattle

Great day for sketching, beautiful location and good turnout. The Garden is a work in progress and it will be fun to come back here to sketch and paint the new amendments and completed construction.

Pen and ink with watercolor in a Moleskine sketchbook.

February Sketch Gathering - Melrose & Pike Seattle

Went into town with Tamra and had breakfast at the Corner Cafe (1000 Madison St.), great food and staff. Walking down to the gathering I came across this view and went back to sketch it after the morning meetup.

Our daughter had a music performance at CWU (Ellensburg) that afternoon, so getting back for the afternoon sharing wasn't possible.

Pen & ink with a watercolor wash in a Moleskine watercolor sketchbook.  

New England Marina

On a recent trip to Boston we got to hang out in New Bedford, some sixty miles south of Bean Town. This sketch was done from Knowles Beach looking back to the nearby village of South Dartmouth.

Pen and ink with a watercolor wash in a Moleskine watercolor sketchbook.

Boston Common - Oldest Park in the US

Wow, what a long day, or days. We caught the red eye from Seattle to Boston, getting in at 7am and we hit the tourist streets running in an effort to get on Eastern time. This sketch was done late in the afternoon of the second day without sleep. Let's face it travel to a rarely visited city makes up for the lack of Zs'

March Gathering

When you walk into Emerald City Trapeze Arts you are ask to remove your shoes, it was the variety of foot wear that initially caught my eye. That and they weren't swinging back and fourth and doing back flips.....

Pen and ink with a watercolor wash in a Moleskine.

Port of Tacoma

My daughter had back to back music days in Tacoma which gave me the opportunity to sketch this one day and color it the next (yes, I'm that slow...). Mother Nature also was kind and though she spared the rain, she did provide some finger numbing temperatures - yeah, yeah I know it's January, but I'm old.

I don't know what building this is, it's old, boarded up and is in need of someone's big wallet to get her back into shape. Let's hope that happens, it's still a grand structure even in it's current condition. 

There are a number of mills in the Port of Tacoma and most all have their steam/smoke stacks going. They provide their own cloud system even on the nicest of days.

Don't know if I would do this tall format again, doesn't bode well for computer viewing.

Pen and ink with a watercolor wash in a moleskine sketchbook.

Coffee House Sketches with Bike

My family and I went to the United States Air Force Band of the Golden West concert at Benaroya Hall (Seattle) last night. What an outstanding event with a huge variety of music (free to the public). The sketches here were people and things I came across on my way into town. The other unexpected pleasure of the evening happened at Tully's when a gentleman sat down and started (with great skill) to play the grand piano that sits near the entrance.

Watercolor Moleskine sketchbook without using pen and ink. We'll see.......

Stimson-Green Mansion - sort of...

This sketch is from the February Seattle Sketcher's Gathering at the Stimson-Green mansion. The building is beautiful inside and out and yet I chose to sketch the pathway between the mansion and staff quarters. Sometimes I look back at creative decisions and scratch my head....

A touch of watercolor, pen and ink in a watercolor moleskine.

safe in the city

what a treat to get out the fingerpaints after such a dry spell! was great to see you all and share this great spot with its magnificent views of the city, warm and dry in clouds of coffee mist! i managed one sketch each from the windows of Bauhaus and Victrola coffee establishments.

New York New York!

Teresa and I ventured to The Big Apple earlier in the month to see MoMA's Matisse show ( http://www.moma.org/visit/calendar/exhibitions/969) and spent time each day walking and sketching. Sketched this sitting on a bench in Bryant Park, a little rain but not much! Have been missing our sketchcrawls, hope to get out to the next one!

stolen moments

Have been working way too much this summer, missed seeing all of you a couple times now. Finally sharing a few sketches from the whole period -- all the way back to our visit to the Center for Wooden Boats.
A little sketch from my favorite haunt, Fishermen's Terminal:

A visit to Steveston, B.C., an historic fishing community:

And finally a reverie along the Snohomish? River in Snohomish, opposite the lumber mill. I forgot to bring a pen so enjoyed trying this with gouache only.

Hope to rejoin you all on the 29th somewhere!

Seattle Waterfront

The barge and crane were moored just south of the Aquarium, the 'not so perfect' stuff at the tourist laden waterfront.

Back to School

I've gone back to college to take care of unfinished business and become more tech wise. I really thought I'd be the oldest student by far, yet that's not the case. This school/homework thing has really cut into my sketching time......


This was done on the Highline campus, looking west to Vashon. Pen and ink with watercolor in a Moleskine.

Northlake Way

Hey Seattle Sketchers - I've missed getting out with y'all! I've been tied up with a remodel and travel and just haven't been able to make it out for a sketchcrawl in months. Unfortunately I can't make it this weekend either. But I did sign up for Portland, hopefully see some of you there! (Drawing: earlier this week from the north end of Lake Union)
-Will

A Terrible Beauty - Renton, WA

The Irish pub in Renton known as 'A Terrible Beauty' (from 'Easter' a William Butler Yeats poem) has gone through a number of names and owners until getting it right this time. Though the outside of the building is one of the ugliest thing ever designed, the inside takes you straight to Limerick. You won't go wrong ordering from the kitchen - both Irish and NW fare are done well and reasonably priced. The staff is friendly and don't be surprised to discover a musician or two playing next to the fireplace on a Sunday afternoon. This was a multi-visit effort (or just an excuse to go back).

Folklife Festival - Seattle

I've been going to the Folklife Festival for almost 30 years and over time it really hasn't changed much (a good thing I think). It has a tendency to get very crowded mid-afternoon even when it's raining. It's a celebration of music, cultures and many different lifestyles and has yet to disappoint when it comes to people watching and sketching.

Wallingford Center

I'm a little slow posting, and getting over a cold, but here's my sketch painting of the cupcake store, and I was trying out my new sketchbook similar to a moleskin, different brand...it worked well. A fun day.

joys of the waterfront

Was a great day to connect with friends and draw in the cold outside or the warm inside! This was a view west from the streetcar station, a block from the bookstore.
And here is Ramesh's 46-second portrait of another sketcher -- we timed him!

Everyone has fun at the Food Circus!

For those of you who were not here in Seattle in 1962, the Center House used to house the Food Circus and the Bubbleator (prompting the eternal joke, "What happened to the tourist lady who visited the Seattle World's Fair?"), a clear spherical acrylic elevator that moved people slowly and futuristically from the first floor to the second -- and back! For some of us, the Food Circus will always be with us....

It was great to see all of you sketchers and your beautemous sketchbooks of wonder. Here are the leaves I came to paint today!