Seattle Bouldering Project

Last weekend our Seattle sketching group went to Seattle Bouldering Project, a climbing gym tucked away just off Rainier Avenue in central Seattle. Its web site describes it.

"...the best climbing gym in the world. It's the future of indoor climbing. High ceilings. Open layout. Natural light from floor-to-ceiling windows. Enormous, striking climbing walls. Topout boulders. Innovative and grade-consistent routesetting. Seamless padding."

...from toddlers in diapers to tank-topped women and jean-clad men.

 The staff was super welcoming, friendly and very gracious allowing us free access as long as we steered clear of the landing areas, a rule made to protect climbers and spectators alike.

It was the perfect place to meet on a rainy February day evidenced by the scores of climbers.




We definitely have it on our list to revisit during next year's rainy season.

International Sketchcrawl and Kimsooja

I spent the 44th International Sketchcrawl in Vancouver, BC. The local group didn't post a group gathering so I took a couple of opportunities to make some quick sketches in spite of the cold and wind. The first was the corner of Georgia and Granville where I ducked behind the shelter of a storefront to capture the chestnut roaster.

 

The real treat of the weekend for me was a visit to the Vancouver Art Gallery. We knew Emily Carr was showing there but we happened upon the last day of an exhibition by KimSooja, a Korean born, New York City artist. 

Her medium, at least in this exhibition, centered around Korean textiles. The bottari is a Korean scarf that serves many purposes, one being a bundle wrapping. It can contain whatever objects that need to be gathered and carried from one place to another.  

One of her projects was documented through a film showing her 11 day journey through the villages where she lived as a child. She made the journey in a truck that carried many bottari wrapped bundles. A similarly stocked truck inhabited one full room at the exhibition. Although I had to be surreptitious considering the fact that most museums don't allow anything but pencil sketching, I did manage an ink rendering and added color later. It doesn't really capture the rich, tactile quality of the show. Really impressive.

 

Below is a video of another room in the exhibition -- clotheslines of scarves in a mirrored room.

 

Mohai - Drawn to Seattle

I've been wanting to get to MOHAI since its opening last year and it was definitely worth the wait. The mini "foot-path stars" lighting my path at the entrance gave the first hint of enchantment. I was more than impressed as I entered the hall of icons where people were milling about nibbling on snacks and sipping beverages. After sketching for the first hour I caught the informal tour of Gabi Campanario's exhibition, Drawn to Seattle, and I was floored. The variety of displays, the layout and design, not to mention the collection of wonderful sketches and stories was so well done.

The Boeing B-1 airplane shown below was the first airplane to be designed and constructed at Boeing in 1919. It's made of cedar and linen over a spruce frame, the strongest and most lightweight materials at the time. Eddie Hubbard, a local pilot won the contract for the first international airmail service and flew between Seattle and Victoria ten to twelve times a month for seven years. I'm told the plane's position in the MOHAI hall is exactly the same as it would have been when it landed on Lake Union to deliver mail.

 

I visited MOHAI a second time as part of a monthly sketch outing with Seattle Urban Sketchers. I found the Slo-mo-shun IV hydroplane hanging from the ceiling behind the mail plane. This famous Seattle icon won the 1950 Gold Cup setting a water speed record of 160.323 mph in Lake Washington, breaking the world record by almost 20 mph on June 26 of that same year.

 

The LincolnToe truck was constructed by Ed Lincoln, owner. He got the idea after negotiating with a salesman. He purchased a wrecked VW van, hired his friend, Ed Ellison, a master welder, and Joan McGinnis to sculpt a mold for the fiberglass toes. Voila! A toe truck! It was used for 20 years for parades and hired out for charity work: weddings and parties, until it was retired and eventually donated to MOHAI. 

I returned to MOHAI in March and May as artist in residence -- sketching and greeting other interested potential sketchers. These ship sirens used to lead the way on ships' prows. Now they lean in from the wall, overseeing the great hall.  

Saint Monica and Joshua Tree

My best friend Monica Smith would often bemoan her early Catholic upbringing. Nonetheless, the southern California mecca, Santa Monica was named after Monica's patron saint and I will forever be mindful of her while visiting the site.

Just north of Venice the welcome sign says it's famous for it's sport fishing, yacht harbor, cafes and carnival rides. The entrance and palm-lined walkway border the beach.

We listened to Christmas songs in the 70 degree weather at the Santa Monica market.

A pending storm rolled in on Thanksgiving Day.

. . . so we headed over to Joshua Tree National Park

 

Where I had to sketch quickly before the storm moved in.

The next day we headed to both Getty museums. I caught this sketch of "Faustina" in one of the galleries.

Abbot Kinney's Dream

With the flip of a coin in 1898 Abbott Kinney won the rights to the marshy tract of land along the Pacific Ocean just south of Santa Monica. A businessman and real estate developer, Kinney developed his vision to create a cultural mecca - the Venice of America - while traveling in Europe. Despite his efforts at establishing a cultural mecca with gondolas and gondoliers  the dream morphed to accommodate the tastes of the beach-goers and summer holiday guests--the Coney Island of the Pacific complete with freak shows, foreign exhibits and carnival rides.

The canals have been cleaned up and the area has become one of the most desirable residential areas in Los Angeles. We walked the public paths that line the canals and provide a glimpse into the backyards and living rooms of residents.

The Venice Boardwalk borders the beach and maintains the amusement park identity. Cheap eateries, psychedelic shops and medical marijuana dispensaries lure locas and tourists alike. We were warned off the strip after dark "when the gangs come out".

A couple of blocks inland Abbot Kinney Avenue attracts a different set - hipsters and shoppers with enough expendable income that allows them to shop in the boutiques and eat in the upscale restaurants or at least pose in the daily line at Intelligencia coffee.

I did a quick sketch on the LAX Shuttle bus as we toured the parking lot dropping folks off at their respective lot locations.

University of Washington Botanical Gardens

Ahhh. A taste of the tropics in mid-November. 

I warmed up, literally, with the long view. 

The light was amazing and the structure a bit overwhelming, but I loved the contrast of the technical exposed structure and the organic shapes and colors of the plants.  

This multi-colored palm tree caught my eye with the rich texture in the trunk. The leaves were multi-colored with a leopard-like pattern.

I concur with you all who have said it, our host, Doug Ewing was incredibly gracious and welcoming. Maybe we should make this an annual mid-winter location.

Yashiro Friendship Bridge bombed with cozies

Last Friday, in honor of Olympia's Arts Walk XLVII, the main bridge linking downtown Olympia to west Olympia was dressed up in winter finery. A local group that calls themselves the Spectral Spiders organized this community project. Many community members contributed to the lamppost fashion show, some taking on a whole lamppost, others contributing pieces that were stitched together to cover a post.  


Spectral Spiders' facebook tagline says, 

Spectral Spiders warm urban environments with wooly wonder and weird whimsy through community creation of handcrafted textiles. We are based in Thurston County, Washington in Cascadia, USA, and we want a cozy world.

Judging from the smiles and comments posted and heard among the Arts Walk crowd, they've certainly warmed the hearts of Olympians. 

The organizers termed this particular event a yarn installation because they had permission from the city, differentiating it from "yarn bombing" a popular form of guerilla/street art, albeit more widely accepted than most graffiti. Not only is it somewhat domestic (See NY Times article, Graffiti's Cozy, Feminine Side) , it is non-permanent and most often easily removed.  Too easily, it seems since at least three of the lampposts have been totally or partially defrocked. Street people desecrating street art? 

Find more information in Wikipedia's yarn bombing entry, and 

The Olympia-Yashiro Friendship Bridge Cozy project.

Enjoy it while it lasts - it's only up until Sunday, October 13 at noon.