Windy and Powerless at Centennial Park

 

10/11/26 Amgen Helix Bridge

About a month ago, I went on a USk scouting mission to Centennial Park, Seattle’s newish addition to the waterfront amenities. (More of my long-paid tax dollars at work at last!) On that cloudy morning, it was chilly and breezy, but it helped to have hot coffee and warm quiche at Café Hagen (despite their seating being outdoor only). I was looking forward to sketching at the park again with USk Seattle.

Terminal 86 grain terminal from Centennial Park

Although last Sunday was sunny, it was even windier, and the café warm-up we were all looking forward to didn’t materialize: The café was closed due to a power outage! (That lack of power made it interesting to use the public restrooms in the total darkness; I think it was the first time I used my phone’s flashlight in a restroom.)

Urban sketchers, however, are nothing if not hardcore and determined. Many hardy folks sat without shelter in the steely wind along the newly landscaped beach path. I escaped to the nearby Amgen Helix Bridge (which I had sketched for the first time back in 2018), hoping to find a bit more shelter from the wind there (top of post). No such luck, but I guess I was as determined (and chilly) as the others.

I walked across the 400-foot-long bridge, which enables park visitors to cross railroad tracks and industrial buildings over to Elliott Avenue West. After grabbing a bite to eat and warming up, I went back to the waterfront, wondering if the wind had let up. If anything, it was stronger still! The formidable grain terminal was hard to ignore, so I gave it a shot, with the wind occasionally knocking my sketchbook back at me.

We’re a hardy bunch!

A park pooch

I sketched a few other sketchers while we all waited at the bus stop.

Hardy!

Giants of 2026

Urban Sketchers from Seattle and Tacoma chapters met at Carpinito Brothers farm and pumpkin patch in Kent to sketch the giant pumpkins. There were 8 of us but some left before throw down. Mike was still painting as we finished early.

I've sketched these behemoths for several years. This year USk Seattle member, Tina, said there was one entered from nearby her neighborhood. Unfortunately, the grower's name isn't in the top 5 here.

Left to right:
4th Place: Jim Sherwood from Mulino, OR at 1684 pounds
2nd Place: Team Halliday from Maple Ridge, BC at 2037.5 pounds
1st Place: Russ Pugh from Eugene, OR at 2307 pounds
3rd Place: Cindy Tobeck from Olympia, WA at 1773.5 pounds
5th place: Stan Pugh from Puyallup, WA at 1528 pounds

Good to Be Back at West Seattle’s Farmers Market

 

10/4/26 West Seattle Farmers Market

Checking my blog, I think the last time I sketched at the West Seattle Farmers Market was all the way back in 2017 during USk Seattle’s weekend pity party! It was fun to get back there with USk again, especially in Sunday afternoon’s beautiful sunshine.

Buskers are always a favorite subject at farmers markets, and this one had plenty to choose from. Although I only caught a man on ukulele and a teenager on saxophone, I saw and heard at least two more musicians elsewhere in the small-ish market. I managed to catch a few dogs, too!

SAM with WSU

Yesterday morning we met at the Seattle Art Museum and hosted a large group of students from Washington State University in Spokane. The students were from the architecture and design departments.  

It was a wet and windy day so not conducive to sketching outside.  Unfortunately, the lower area of the museum was closed for renovation.  So most of us were crowded into the main lobby.  Museum staff were nice hosts and brought a bunch of stools to use.  

View of the smiling clouds installation with sketchers below.

Throw down of sketches:

The entire group, for scale. And then closer images, dividing the group in two.

 

Zodiac

A large group of sketchers met today at the Seattle Art Museum's Sculpture Park. For me it was a chance to sketch the Ai Weiwei Circle of Animals, Zodiac heads which he made in 2010. I wanted to do the entire arc. They are, left to right: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig. The red shape behind them is The Eagle by Alexander Calder (1971).

It was an impressive throw-down! 

USk Rides to the Eastside

 

9/13/26 Northwest African American Museum

I woke to hard rain on the roof and windows.

It was the kind of morning that if I hadn’t been the lead, I would have skipped the USk outing. Instead, I boarded the light rail in damp jeans to an outing I had helped plan and had been looking forward to ever since the 2 Line to the Eastside opened last spring.

The first stop of our two-part outing was Judkins Park Station across the street from Jimi Hendrix Park. I was relieved and happy not to be alone on this wet day – a small group of hardy sketchers joined me! Although most stayed in the park to sketch in the light drizzle, I ducked into the Northwest African American Museum, which I hadn’t been to in years (above). Its exhibits tell illuminating stories of noteworthy Black Seattle residents and other significant national figures and their contributions to American history and culture.

I found a window at the museum with a view toward the park’s large sculpture, “Butterfly Canopy,” which I tend to sketch every time I’m in the park. After that, with a short time left before the throwdown, I attempted a strange (and unsuccessful) composition of the edge of the Butterfly and the top of the museum (both below).

Jimi Hendrix Park

Throwdown at Judkins Station

After our throwdown, a handful of sketchers rode on to Part 2 of the outing: Bellevue Downtown Station. Most had not yet taken the light rail across Lake Washington, so it was fun to know that our outing was their first opportunity.

Riding the rails across the lake!

Famished by the time we got to Bellevue, I made lunch at Café Hagen my first stop. It was as good a place as any to finish a page of sketches for the outing’s second leg. Although we didn’t get the best weather, a day of sketching with USk is always better than a day without!

Cafe Hagen, downtown Bellevue

Throwdown at Bellevue Downtown Station

Full Moon Over Discovery Park

 

9/9/26 Discovery Park Radar Dome and Heritage District

After my scouting mission to Discovery Park in July, it was fun to finally meet there with Urban Sketchers, especially on a gorgeous but not-too-hot day. With 560 acres, Discovery is Seattle’s largest park. We decided to focus on the Fort Lawton Historic District featuring the 100-foot high Cold War-era radar dome or “Radome.”

Rising like a mysterious full moon over the district’s turn-of-the-20^th-century (still occupied) homes, the Radome was both bizarre and irresistible, at least to me. I sketched it twice, once behind the historic homes (above) and once from the former Ft. Lawton Parade Grounds (below).

Ft. Lawton Post Chapel

With a short time left before the throwdown, I sketched the Fort Lawton Post Chapel that I’d admired the last time I visited. The World War II-era chapel is somewhat plain and not very distinctive as far as chapels go, but I always enjoy sketching steeples.

Once again, we were treated to “ideal” sketching weather that was comfortable even in the sun (if you’re fast like I am). Most sketchers found hospitable trees offering large areas of shade. I wouldn’t mind if the weather stayed like this for the next three months! (Of course, it will likely end any day now.)

Soos Creek Botanical Garden, Auburn

What a fun time sketching at Soos Creek Botanical Garden in Auburn. Thanks, Kate, for the suggestion for a free place to admire sunflowers, and for getting things started!

It was quite a drive there and back, but we sure did get our greens on! 🌻🌻🌻 We even had a young sketcher-in-the-making along for the ride: Maddie. She kindly let her mum work away on her sketch with minimal fussing. 👼💛💛💛