Saturday, April 1, 2023

First Half of 2021 Sketches

 2021 was beginning to look better with more people getting vaccinated and some things a little more open.  Getting out in nature continued to be one of the enjoyable parts to our months of still working from home.

To start the new year we got a long weekend on Whidbey Island.  One afternoon I went out by  myself to sketch a few places near our AirBNB.



I also continued to follow the construction progress of the lightrail as it came north into Shoreline.





Also the new year saw a big changes at Northgate Mall as the new masterplan began to take shape.  One of the parts to building new, was to remove some of the old retail.  Below is the demolition of the Nordstrom store designed by my company (Callison) in 1977.  See article from the Seattle Times announcing Nordstrom plans at Northgate.


Honoring MLK Day with a sketch of Langston Hughes and King.  The words from Hughes and MLK.

Sketching with co-workers at the Seattle Chinese Garden.  This outing was the first time getting together with co-workers in over a year of working at home.


Spending some vacation time with the family at Point-No-Point.  Missed the 108 degree weather in Seattle and enjoyed the cooler breezes from Puget Sound during the heatwave.


Got up extra early to sketch before sunrise at the lighthouse.  Started drawing at 4:30 AM.



A house built with the wheel house of an old ship.  Just couldn't resist capturing this unusual home.



Sketching at Kubota Garden with Seattle Plein Aires



Sketching at Kukutali, one of my favorite spots to visit during COVID.





Camping at Winthrop before fire season.




Sketching with friends at Fisherman's Wharf











The second half of 2020

 This year was one of uncertainty because we continued to be isolated from work and our families.  We took opportunities to get outside and do day trips to places nearby.  Nature was a real blessing to being stuck at home for many days.  A few of the sketches were done from photos since they were a little too far for a day trip. (Smith Rock)  I also continued to practice drawing with my IPad .







Sunflower out of the garden and I sketched with a bamboo stick



Gary Fagin teaching an on-line class with Gage Academy












2020/21 Social Justice

 As I attended protests in Shoreline for Justice and Black Lives, I tried my hand at trying to capture the events and some of the mood of those days.  I tried to stay loose and quick with my sketches as the mood of the days was full of positive energy.