Category Archives: Drawing

Beginnings…

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There are many ways to begin a drawing on location. For architectural subject matter, I typically search for a vertical plane that is both prominent and whose proportions are discernible to the eye. Placing this plane, correctly sized and in the proper location, will ensure that the entire intended scene will fit the page.

Anther place to begin is with an important vertical edge, which becomes in effect a measuring stick for the entire scene.

We can also begin with a vertical spatial plane, which is appropriate when drawing views of streets, alleyways, and the interiors of church naves and halls.

Or when there is no discernible geometry that can guide us, then we have to resort to capturing an unusual shape or opening.

The Triangle

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Another bifurcated view (See posts from 9.3.16, 10.11.16, and 2.6.18), this one of what was originally known as the Classic Tavern. The venue was renamed the Triangle Tavern in the early 1990s because of its shape where North 35h Street meets Fremont Place North. In 2009, the bar was rebranded again as Triangle Spirits. Despite all of these name changes, most locals simply refer to it as The Triangle.

4th & University

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I drew this view from a rootop terrace on the southwest corner of 4th and University Avenues. It depicts buildings from three different periods of Seattle’s downtown development. On the right is Minoru Yamasaki’s iconic Rainier Tower of 1977. To the left is the Cobb Building, a brick-and-terra cotta Beaux-Arts design by the New York firm of Howells and Stokes, which was completed in 1907. And in the background undergoing construction is a new 58-story mixed use tower by NBBJ.

Below is another view of the terra cotta ornamentation atop the Cobb Building, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Pike Place Market

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Soon after drawing the Showbox Theater, I wandered over to take in and capture this view of Pike Place Market, looking toward the iconic market sign and clock. The drawing illustrates the use of tonal contrast to animate and draw attention to three specific areas while merely suggesting the context, such as the throngs of people crossing the intersection of 1st Avenue and Pike.

For comparison purposes, here are two additional views of the market entranceway, taken from two different viewpoints of the main market entranceway.

The Showbox Theater

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The original market structure built in 1917 at 1426 1st Avenue, across from the entranceway to Pike Place Market, was transformed in 1939 by Bjarne H. Moe, who designed the art-deco interior of the theater and added this marquee out front. Over the past six decades, the theater has provided a venue for musical acts from Vaudeville and jazz to grunge and hip-hop.

In 2018, Vancouver, BC-based Onni Group bought the property and announced plans to demolish the building and replace it with a 44-story residential tower. That same year, local preservation groups organized a campaign to secure a landmark nomination in an effort to save the Showbox. The Seattle City Council recently voted unanimously to extend temporarily the Pike Place Historic District to include the original Showbox building. This has, for a time, protected the building from demolition.

Approach to Red Square

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These two views can be seen approaching Red Square, the central plaza on the University of Washington campus. The first uses the statue of George Washington to establish the foreground, with Suzzallo Library establishing depth in the background. The bronze sculpture was commissioned by the Daughters of the American Revolution and sculpted by Lorado Taft for the Alaska Yukon Expedition of 1909.

In the second view, the elaboration of the Suzzallo Library facade draws the viewer through the space between Odegaard Undergraduate Library into the scene and Meany Hall, up a broad stairway, and into Red Square.

Line to Color Workshop

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Gail Wong and I will be returning to Orange County, California, for another Line to Color workshop the weekend of June 14–16. We will be sketching and learning at the San Juan Capistrano mission and Laguna Beach.

Learning Goals: LINE 1. Selecting a subject and establishing a point of view; 2. Composing the page: Where to start & how to proceed; 3. Establishing spatial depth: Near & far.

Moving to COLOR: 4. Watercolor and brush techniques; 5. Values: Seeing and using tonal values to create depth and capture the quality of light; 6. Strategies for applying color and limiting your palette.

For information about the schedule of events, registration forms, pricing, and method of payment, please contact Gail at glwarc at gmail dot com.

DeConstructing the Viaduct: Part II

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It was somewhat difficult to capture these giant machines as they were moving and munching away at the elevated concrete structure. What I should have been more careful of was establishing the position of the machines’ armatures in such a way that it was clear what was machine and what was concrete structure. The way the forms overlap in the above view makes this distinction a little too ambiguous.