Happy Clouds

We met at the Seattle Art Museum (SAM). My objective was to see and sketch the new-ish installation, "Friends With You: Little Cloud Sky".

It is a "commission from FriendsWithYou, the internationally celebrated duo of Samuel (Sam) Borkson and Arturo (Tury) Sandoval III." It hangs from the tall ceiling in the main entrance lobby. "Little Cloud Sky (2025) is composed of 40 of the artists’ signature Little Cloud character, each custom made of plastic, four feet wide, and suspended from the ceiling of the Brotman Forum. The work is designed to spread positivity and inspire a sense of connection, encouraging museum visitors to reflect on the beauty of togetherness and the power of joy and nature."

I sat on the floor at the far end of the lobby to get the entire view of the little clouds. 

I went into one of the upstairs galleries to see a new exhibit. I didn't stay there long but noticed that the sculpture "Mann und Maus" had been moved. I liked the positioning near a window through which I could see the "SAM" sign.

Probably because it is the weekend - Sunday - there were a lot of sketchers. At least a couple left early.

Lots more photos here.

Cozy SAM

 

3/15/26 Mountains, Alexander Calder, Seattle Art Museum

On a chilly morning following our freaky snowfall, I was more than happy to spend a few hours with USk inside the cozy Seattle Art Museum. Since my white pencil with black paper have been serving me well at art museums, both SAM and the Asian Museum, I gave them a shot on Calder’s work, Mountains, which I hadn’t seen before. All black, the sheet-metal sculpture stands with the dark elevators behind it on one side, so I walked around it to find an angle with a lighter-colored background (above). That’s when I discovered the round hole in the center – such a beautiful counterpoint to all the sharp angles.

That took longer than I wanted; by the time I was done, I was ready for lunch. As Kate and I chatted over our lunches at the SAM café, I caught a sideview of the whimsical Little Cloud Sky, an installation hanging over the lobby (the front view I sketched several months ago shows the clouds’ smiling faces).

SAM cafe and lobby

I had time for one more sketch before the throwdown. I went back upstairs where a horse had caught my eye earlier. By contemporary artist Deborah Butterfield, life-size Pascal is made of steel and iron (below).

Pascal, Deborah Butterfield

SAM with WSU Students

 

10/10/25 Seattle Art Museum's Hammering Man

SAM interior

Every October, Washington State University professor Bob Krikac and his colleagues bring their interior design and landscape architectural students to Seattle for a variety of educational opportunities. Meeting with USk Seattle is on Bob’s agenda each year, and we always look forward to sketching with about 50 young people. Bob and the other instructors feel strongly that observational drawing on location is an important skill for any design student to learn (and I certainly agree). What could be better than giving the students that experience with Seattle USk?

This year we chose the Seattle Art Museum for our joint outing. In the center of downtown Seattle, the museum building itself, especially the huge Hammering Man sculpture, and surrounding buildings are great practice in architectural drawing. In case of rain, we could all duck into the museum’s free lobby area. (About halfway through the outing, we were happy to have that option, as the morning’s drizzle turned to rain.)

At right is "Little Cloud Sky," the long-term exhibit over the SAM lobby.

I got a good opportunity to sketch both outside and inside SAM, including the newish Little Cloud Sky long-term exhibit over the lobby. The herd of three-dimensional cloud faces is cute and uplifting, I guess. Compared to Middle Fork, the huge hand-built tree that hung over the lobby for several years, or the crazy overhead cars before that, these rubbery smiley faces are a bit underwhelming. They are, however, a deceptively difficult perspective challenge, so there’s that (if you’re into that kind of thing).

As always, it was invigorating to be around the enthusiastic students, who were all eager to draw.

One of our biggest throwdowns ever!

Cheerful but deceptively difficult to sketch!

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.

SAM with a guest

 With Nishant Jain (@thesneakyartist) visiting from Vancouver, BC I braved the "unhealthy" air (AQI 130+) for our outing with him outside the Seattle Art Museum.

I've sketched the Hammering Man before.  This time I wanted to capture the machinery that makes his arm move.  Across the street are the tiny figures of Ellie and April. 

Nishant was going to teach an afternoon workshop near Pike Place Market.  We walked up there to have a picnic lunch together.  Over lunch, he showed us his sketch books and talked about his approach.  I felt like I had half a workshop then.  Which was good as I left early due to feeling short of breath from the poor air.  

 

SAM Ram

11/17/19 Seattle Art Museum lobby

The Seattle Art Museum’s resident Chinese camels, rams and human figure received plenty of sketcher attention this morning. I was one of many USk Seattle members who were attracted to the iconic marble sculptures. Since I sketched the back end of a camel the last time we met at the museum, this time I gave a ram a try, along with the Chinese figure behind it. Unlike some brave souls, I ignored most of the long lobby stairway and its imposing decorative ceiling.

After that time-consuming exercise in graphite and quite a bit of chatting, I hardly had time to catch a few gestures of sketchers (and a security guard) scattered around the lobby before it was time for the throwdown. We had an excellent turnout again with a few new faces, including a visitor from Austin.

11/17/19 Seattle Art Museum lobby

SAM And Starbucks

It was a large group of sketchers who met in the Seattle Art Museum (SAM) lobby today. We numbered at least 20.

Throw down and group photo:




I've sketched it twice before, but I settled on a different view of Middle Fork. It's by John Grade. The suspended tree was made from a plaster cast of a 140 y/o western hemlock found in the Middle Fork area of the Snoqualmie River (hence the name). The contour of the tree was reproduced using thousands of pieces of reclaimed, old growth, cedar. It was completed by hundreds of volunteers under the direction of the artist and his assistants. One volunteer was a member of USk Seattle and another was associated (husband of a sketcher). 



I noticed a new Starbucks Reserve store across the street. It's an even more upscale Starbucks and has an interesting interior. However, I chose to sit at the window with Pam.
I sketched the view of SAM across the street. It's a very loose sketch with little of my usual detail! I added the Reserve logo on the edge



A few more photos here.

Back End of a Camel (and a Wandering Sketchbook)

1/25/19 Marble camel sculpture, Seattle Art Museum

1/25/19 Hammering Man at SAM

When I was growing up, the marble camel sculptures that are inside the Seattle Art Museum used to be outside the original museum (now the Seattle Asian Art Museum at Volunteer Park, where replicas took their place in 1991). I’ve sketched the replicas a few times, but I couldn’t remember ever sketching the original camels at the downtown SAM, so I made one of them my objective at today’s USk Seattle outing. (See this post for a photo of why the camels are special to me.)

Now protected from the elements, the camels guard a long, windowed stairway. Instead of choosing the more common front view, I went around to the back end of a camel and found a handy seat in the museum’s classroom. About an hour into the sketch, I was informed by museum staff that a class of middle schoolers would be showing up within minutes, so I reluctantly gave up my seat. Fortunately, I was mostly done. Eavesdropping on their lesson in perspective, I finished up standing a short distance away.

Next I braved the cold to complete another objective: Filling a page in a wandering sketchbook! USk Boston co-admin and avid sketcher Andre Behrens has released several “wandering sketchbooks” into the wild by giving them to members of other Urban Sketchers groups. He doesn’t want the sketchbooks back; he asks only that we fill their pages and use the hashtag #wanderingsketchbooks when we post images of the sketches on Instagram. I love the idea of sketchbooks wandering around the world, collecting sketches!

1/25/19 Pike Brewing Co.

I thought that the iconic Hammering Man kinetic sculpture outside SAM would be an appropriate symbol of Seattle to put into the book. I’ve passed the book along, and I hope it keeps going far and wide on its travels.

To end the fun morning, some of us went to Pike Brewing Company for lunch. Amusing, eclectic décor surrounds the diningroom, and the hanging beer bottles were among my favorite. 

Throwdown with a floral centerpiece!

David's 10x10

As usual, I took the light rail into downtown Seattle. I get on near the starting location for the route but by the time we got further along, the train filled up with marchers.I sketched two young people across from me on the train who were obviously on their way to the March.  He wore the march t shirt.  She had a Hogwarts lanyard!



The reason for the trip was David Chamness's USk Seattle 10x10 workshop, "Freedom from Worry: Immerse Yourself & Let The Sketch Flow".

Scenes from the workshop and throw down. We didn't take a group photo!





It worked for me in a big way (pun intended). I sketched larger (9 by 12 inches) and looser than usual. I didn't like the Benroya one at first but it has since grown on me. David's coaching was helpful! 



This camel sculpture is from China, Ming dynasty (1368-1644). "It is thought to be from the spirit path to the tomb of Zhu Gaosui (died 1436), third son of the Yongle emperor (reigned 1403-24). Marble"

The Military Guardian is also from China, Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). "From the spirit path of an unknown tomb of the 17th-18th century. Marble".




David encouraged the bold colors. 

A Celebration of Spring on the 10th Anniversary of USK

This year marks the 10th Anniversary of Urban Sketchers worldwide. As we met at Seattle Art Museum on Sunday morning, I knew several of my fellow urban sketchers would stay in the lobby to draw the new installation of John Grade's "Middle Fork". In the spirit of group reportage, I decided to make the short walk up to Pike Place Market and find something iconic and celebratory to commemorate the first weekend of spring. Winter was finally over in the city where Urban Sketchers was founded.

The Gum Wall, the Balloon Man, an abundant display of cherry blossoms--all seemed a celebration of the first  weekend of spring.

Everybody says "Ewwwww!"
  
The gum wall was my first destination. After a steam cleaning in November of 2015 removed 2,350 lbs of accumulated gum, for the first time in 20 years the brick walls in Pike Place Market's Post Alley were clear. I thought it was about time to see how the "mural of gum" looks now. Jackson Pollock would be proud. I doubt, however, that his work was usually greeted by exclamations of "Ewwww!" and warnings of "Don't touch it!" as people do when they first encounter the gum wall. But then you can't contribute to one of Pollock's compositions either. And it reminds me of a freeze frame photo of confetti and fireworks!

At the corner of 1st and Pike
 Farrell Thomas The Balloon Man, aka Twister Thomas, is one of the colorful denizens of the Pike Street Neighborhood. Balloon animals are quite festive aren't they? Thomas has a spot by the information booth. Brass hoof prints at his feet lead to another market icon, Rachel the pig. A few drops of rain fell from the overhang I was using as cover and blotted my sketch of his face a little, but I think it just gives more character to the quick study.

As it continued to rain, I retreated further under the shelter of the entryway of DB Laurenti's on the corner of 1st and Pike. I considered sketching the iconic news stand, but the full blossoms across the street looked like puffy pink kernels bursting out of the top of the trees like movie popcorn. A celebration of spring!

I finished my sketch of the cherry trees and the street corner. By now it was time for me to walk back down two blocks and meet with Seattle Urban Sketchers at the SW lobby of SAM to share our sketches. We covered the entire Pike Street Neighborhood, the museum and more.

As you can see by other posts on the subject, we had a great turnout for our first weekend of Spring!

I saw wonderful sketches of the installation "Middle Fork", the stone sculptures of camels on the stairs, street views up and down the block, the "Hammering Man" and examples from various exhibits that were personally chosen by each artist. It turned out to be a celebration of Seattle, urban sketching, reportage and spring!