US Bank Centre Another Winter Mainstay

 

1/11/25 US Bank Centre second level

Sometime during the pandemic, the US Bank Centre building’s lobby underwent a huge remodel – so much so that I didn’t recognize it as a place we had sketched back in 2017. Interestingly, though, the view from one of the second floor windows was vaguely familiar, and that’s because I had sketched it back then, too! It’s funny how the compositions that had attracted me then still do now. In any case, the multiple levels that are open to the public gave USk Seattle many places to settle into cozy seating with their beverages from Olympia Coffee on a chilly morning. We’re happy to have another winter mainstay!

I enjoyed sketching these backlit people from the mezzanine level.

What a great turnout!

RIP Shawn Yim

I spent my morning documenting the procession of over 100 buses honoring the memory of murdered King County Metro driver Shawn Yim, who was stabbed to death in December 2024 while on the job. It was the first time in 26 years this has happened in Seattle.

There were a lot of media folks on the bridge over 4th ave on Yesler this morning but I was the only one with a sketchbook. A little after 10am police blocked off the street and the buses started rolling through below us. The first one displayed "Shawn Yim / 21882" on its sign. (21882 is his King County Metro employee number.)

There were a few vintage buses in the procession along with tons of Sound Transit and King County vehicles, including maintenance vans and tow trucks. I saw drivers representing agencies from as far away as Grays Harbor & Skagit counties.

Using watersoluble pencils, I quickly drew some of the buses as they drove down 4th Ave, and added colors after the procession. 

 

Around 11, I finished up my drawings and headed to WAMU theater by Lumen Field, where the memorial service was being held. The cavernous space was pretty much full of people, mostly of safety vest wearing folks from transit agencies. A huge turnout.

I definitely teared up while taking notes from the speeches. It was good to get to know some more about Shawn Yim as a person. He seemed like a really kind guy and it's such a tragedy to lose someone like that involved in public service. The few speeches I was able to stay for had notes of humor, sadness, and anger.

I don't have any personal connection to Shawn Yim besides that I used to ride the #70 route a lot (the one Shawn was driving when he was killed), but I am a transit user. I want to show my solidarity with the workers who move our city and are put in danger far more than they should be.

Elegant Union Station

 

1/8/25 Union Station

I don’t know why it took USk Seattle so long to get back to Union Station after the pandemic (the last time was in 2019), but it was high time we did. In fact, it should definitely become a wintertime mainstay – elegant, challenging, fun – and we always seem to have the place to ourselves!

Last used as a functioning train station in 1971, Union Station now houses the offices of Sound Transit, which operates our light rail system. It’s also rented out for private events on weekends and evenings, but during weekdays, the huge space is open to the public. Other than the security guards, sketchers seemed to be the only occupants on Wednesday afternoon. We certainly took advantage of all the tables and chairs! (I forgot to take photos of the whole interior, but my post from 2019 includes one.)

In my usual on-location comics style, I tried to capture a variety of parts and pieces of the station to tell the story of the beautifully restored Union Station. I was impressed by the number of sketchers who took on that daunting domed architecture! (I kept my attempt to a 2-inch square.) 

Swanson's in winter

We met at Swanson's Nursery for a winter outing to sketch remaining decorations.

I wandered around outside for a while. It was drizzling but there was cover. However, I got a little chilled so I sat in the warmth of the cafe to sketch the small Dino Santa.

Several of us drew this Swanson's 100 display.

 

 It was a big group of over 25, with at least 2 missing from the photo. Stephanie Bower took the photo. Srinath V., who just moved here from a USk chapter in India, had to leave early.

 

More photos here.

On the drive home, I got caught on highway 99 with the First Ave S. drawbridge up to allow a crane to pass underneath. Sigh. But, then I realized the Urban Sketchers' joke and took it as a command. I drew the draw bridge up while I waited. Draw Bridge while sketch-waiting!

Bananas and Plants at Swansons

 

12/27/24 Swansons Nursery

At most USk Seattle visits to Swansons Nursery, I typically start sketching outdoors, then move indoors if it’s cold. But the chilly drizzle on Friday morning pushed me indoors right off the bat – first in one of the large retail areas, then a nice table in the café with a few other sketchers. It was a fine view of plenty of plants and the popular koi pond.

New at this visit were lots of banana-shaped caution cones scattered all over the store – bright yellow, eye-catching and fun to draw!

Welcome to new Seattle resident (but longtime USk member) Srinath Vasireddy!

presbyterian badminton

 

On Thursday evenings, people from age 10 to 70 gather to play competitive badminton in the gathering space of New Hope Presbyterian Church in Kent, WA.

Unlike most other courts, the surface is carpeted. It makes the game feel foreign to your body. Also, unlike the outdoor badminton you may have played in your backyard, this is a very fast-paced sport.

No one seems to know why there are badminton courts inside this place, but putting the space to use in the off-hours makes sense. There are also markings for basketball, but imagining that big heavy ball getting thrown around a space where there are stained glass windows makes me feel a bit stressed.

Despite the incongruity of playing in front of a giant wooden cross, it is a pretty nice place to play, especially when it's free. But because of that the sessions are quite busy, so you end up waiting a long time for your turn to get on the court. 

We went to New Hope a few times recently, when my partner was participating in a league. It's quite far from us, especially in rush hour traffic, so we probably won't become regulars. But I think it's interesting that it's a thing that's out there.

Farewell, Middle Fork

 

12/14/24 John Grade's Middle Fork in Seattle Art Museum lobby

In 2017, a remarkable piece was installed in the Seattle Art Museum’s lobby: John Grade’s Middle Fork, a 105-foot-long sculpture hanging from the ceiling. Built with the help of many volunteers, the sculpture is made of thousands of tiny pieces of cedar glued into a horizontal likeness of the tree that inspired it.

Meeting at SAM shortly after Middle Fork was installed, members of USk Seattle had been stunned and awed by its size and scope. Nearly eight years later, it is still no less daunting to sketch, at least for me. Since Middle Fork will come down in February (and returned to the Cascade forest floor near the 140-year-old tree that inspired the work), USk Seattle met in the SAM lobby again for one last chance to sketch it.

Since I had just been given a new Seawhite of Brighton concertina sketchbook, I thought it would be the right format for the 105-foot-long subject. First I filled six panels of the book by looking up at it from the lobby (above).

Then I went up to the second floor and sketched the “trunk” end head-on (I notated the spot in my first sketch where I was standing to make the second).

From upper level

With 15 minutes to fill before the throwdown, I went back down to the lobby near the admissions desk (below). I liked the contrasting patterns of Middle Fork’s organic “limbs” and the power-line-like rope stanchions.

Lobby admissions desk area

Farewell, Middle Fork – you never stopped inspiring awe whenever I visited. And now we are all wondering what kind of spectacular artwork will take your place. It will have large limbs to fill.

Central Library is Cozy Before the Storm

 

11/22/24 Seattle Central Library

Can this possibly be comfortable?

The downtown Central Library was one of the first outings USk Seattle had after the pandemic lockdown opened up in 2021. That September day was warm enough that I stayed outdoors to take on the library’s daunting architecture. This morning, the weather wasn’t quite so hospitable. With the wind picking up for another “bomb cyclone” expected this afternoon, most sketchers opted for cozy indoor sketching, myself included.

While I waited for other sketchers outside the library entrance, I began with a small sketch of the Henry Moore sculpture “Vertebrae” across the street at the Safeco building (above, upper left). The rest of my page spread (below) includes vignettes of library patrons studying, reading, browsing and sleeping. For sketchers who like to sketch people, the library is a treasure trove of human studies.

After an enjoyable lunch with Allan (no sketch of my sandwich; I must have been hungry), Roy and I continued on to Gelatiamo for affogato. It was good to get fortified for my light rail ride and breezy walk home from the station.

11/22/24 Gelatiamo, Third & Union