Incomparable Views from Columbia Center

 

1/24/26 Views from the Columbia Center's 73rd floor Sky View Observatory

During my first few years of sketching, the ticket price to ride up to the Columbia Center’s 73^rd floor Sky View Observatory was only $5. A small group of sketchers had gathered up there a couple of times, and I went up myself on other occasions (here’s a sketch from 2012, and another from 2013). Eventually, the ticket price crept up to the current price of $33, making it cost-prohibitive as a USk venue.

Lady luck and a kind ticket seller were with us on Saturday afternoon, however, when USk Seattle showed up. We thought we would have access to the entire interesting lobby area that’s open to the public on weekdays. Unfortunately, under a new policy, only the ticketing area to the observation floor is open on weekends. Taking pity on us on that cold day, the ticket seller offered us a generous group discount, so most of us opted to sketch from the 73^rd floor.

On a cloudless day, the 360-degree view was incomparable! In addition to Mt. Rainier and the Olympic mountains, Mt. Baker is visible from up there – one of few spots in Seattle where that northern peak can be seen. Yes, Columbia Center is even better than the Space Needle (a ticket to the top now costs $49), which is always jam-packed with tourists. Although some tourists were at Columbia Center, most snapped a few photos and moved on quickly, leaving all the cushy seating to sketchers.

And sketch we did! Nearly 40 sketchers enjoyed an inspiring afternoon in the sky.

Mt. Rainier and the Cascades to the south

Mt. Baker to the north

Before the outing began, I stood at 4th and Cherry to make this 5-minute sketch of Columbia Center. Five minutes was all I could stand in the cold!

Making Marks With and Without Intention

 

1/20/26 photo reference

The other evening, I caught myself starting to doomscroll, so I gave my wrist a swift slap and grabbed a sketchbook. My reference photo was a neighbor’s colorful yard that I had snapped at the height of summer. I had been so attracted to all the lush layers of textures and colors I saw, not just in the yard but all the way down the block. Recalling the loose and free mark-making that Orla Stevens demonstrates and recommends, I first used a Derwent Drawing pencil to sketch in monochrome (below). I was just having fun making a variety of marks by holding the pencil in different ways – loosely from the back end, tightly as I usually do, gripped in my fist, held backhand the way lefties apparently write (not me, though).

1/20/26 photo reference

When I was done, it occurred to me that I had unintentionally made a values study. Of course, that got me thinking about the values-based color studies I have been making lately. Instead of making a simple mark-making exercise to distract myself from doomscrolling, it became a more intentional color study based on values (top of post). And since I’d already done the values study, it was easy to fill in with a variety of colors, even if they didn’t make “sense.” For example, the plants in the foreground were lavender, but I chose amber and pale green to emulate the lavender’s values. It was fun and relaxing because I focused on making a variety of marks, not trying to render the scene accurately. 

Limited tools, limited choices

Bonus: Although my main intention was doomscrolling prevention, I think these exercises now have the added benefit of being good practice for looser urban sketches.

I used the somewhat random and limited assortment of mixed-media tools (at right) that were still nearby. After making a couple of studies from photos several weeks ago, the water-soluble pencils and crayons had stayed next to my reading chair. I added the Caran d’Ache Fibralo markers after seeing Orla Stevens’ YouTube. It’s working out well as my anti-doomscrolling kit. With a small number of materials and colors, it keeps me from spending too much time thinking about what to use, and I can just jump in.

Below is a pair of sketches I made the next evening using the same process.

1/21/26 photo reference

1/21/26 photo reference

Trying to squelch doomscrolling? Make yourself a small anti-doomscrolling kit of a few mixed-media materials, and keep it next to the chair where you are most likely to scroll. Keep a sketchbook there, too, and you’re all set the next time you catch yourself. It helps to have some reference photos handy, too, but I bet your phone is full of them. Don’t spend long looking for just the right one; remember, it’s all about mark-making and not about accurate rendering. I would add to that: You don’t need to feel “inspired” by the reference photo! Even trash cans work!

Sammy

 

1/12/26 Sammy (reference photo by Katelyn This)

This commissioned portrait of sweet Sammy was a gift for the buyer’s friend, who had recently had to put down the 18-year-old pup. I could see what a long, well-loved life he had had. RIP, Sammy.

Technical notes: It was the kind of reference photo I dreaded back when my approach was to be as realistic as possible. The image was a low-res thumbnail, the lighting was dark, and the whole face was a bit out of focus. I couldn’t even see much of the eyes, let alone a sparkling catchlight. Arrrggh!

I knew a brush pen would save me from having to render what I couldn’t see; I could simply capture the gesture and essence of Sammy’s sweetness. For the all-important eyes, I fudged, mostly from experience: I created catchlights where there were none, and I’ve drawn enough dogs’ eyes to fill in what the photo didn’t provide. I hope Sammy’s human will see her beloved somewhere in the portrait.

Val

 

12/13/24

“I would avoid that seat if I were you . . . Val has been known to throw food.”

That was my first introduction to Val, one of Greg’s co-residents in memory care. As I got to know Val better, I observed her throwing not just food but also beverages and a swift right hook. Lean and petite, she looked frail, but she could lob a balloon across the room during “volleyball” and use the same hand to give you a solid clip, I was told, if you were slow to duck.

Mostly non-verbal, she often responded to music by tapping enthusiastically and even dancing in her own way. In the year-and-a-half that I had observed her, I saw Val smile only once – when she was with a visitor.

She had been in the hospital a while. I recently learned that she had passed away.

3/22/25

10/3/25

11/19/25

Clear Sky Over Gas Works Park

 

1/19/26 Gas Works Park

On Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day, our cold but clear skies continued. Bundled up, I took the top down for my drive to Gas Works Park, where many young people and families were enjoying the holiday. (Aside: A large party of Spanish-speaking picnickers laughed and talked happily as they shared food spread out on the grass. I was heartened to see them because it meant that they – unlike many others in this country – felt safe enough in a Seattle park to gather publicly to enjoy the day, just like everyone else there. I felt compassion and sadness for all darker-skinned people who would not feel safe doing the same wherever they live. Dr. King’s message from six decades ago is, sadly, still just a dream.)

Using chunky Derwent Inktense Blocks to sketch a part of the gas works that I’ve sketched previously many times, I recalled how much time and energy I used to spend trying to render each one of the many pipes connecting the huge tanks and how frustrating it often was to try to draw what I couldn’t see clearly or understand where they connected (here’s one example from 2014). It took me a long time, but I finally realized I don’t have to draw all that to convey the essence of the gas works.

Color note: Although I used the same limited palette of Inktense Blocks as the one I used at Green Lake, the hues are such that they look mostly “normal” at Gas Works Park – that is, I had a green for grass, blue for water and sky, and rusty tones for the tanks. Still, if I’d had a full range to select from, these are not the colors I would have chosen for this scene, so they still seem a bit wacky to me. Overall, though, I can feel my brain finally making a shift toward seeing that hues do not have to match “reality” to read as “real.”

Technical note: As soon as I tried using the “licking” technique for the sky, I regretted it. Although I remembered that Inktense Blocks fail at this trick (compared to most solid water-soluble products), I guess I had hoped that the Blocks had learned the trick since the last time I used them. Nope.

Wacky at Green Lake

 

1/18/26 Green Lake

Sunday was another day of weather we all crave in January: sunny all day, every peak in two mountain ranges fully in view, no wind, no clouds, and temps all the way up in the low 50s. Except for all the down jackets and beanies in view, Green Lake looked like the height of summer – couples, families and dogs all happily soaking in their much-needed vitamin D.

I walked partway around the lake to one of my favorite stands of trees (top of post). Although it was only early afternoon, the low sun gave them long, lean shadows. I hadn’t intended on making on-location comics, but I couldn’t resist recording snippets of conversation I overheard on the path.

As I mentioned in my post a few days ago about Inktense Blocks, I don’t usually take these fragile sticks out with me on location, but since they fit nicely in my tiny Sendak, I took them to Green Lake. I know I’ve said it before, but these Blocks are what I always want Caran d’Ache Neocolor II wax pastels to be in terms of expedient coverage and intensity of color. Now that I have a well-protected way to carry them, I am going to give the Blocks more use in the field.

Instead of continuing to walk around the lake in the same direction, I backtracked to the other side of the pier (at right). Those trees at far right of the huge fir are the same ones I sketched above.

For this one, I used reliable, familiar Caran d’Ache Museum Aquarelles – but the palette was chosen by values, just like I’ve been choosing Neocolor II crayons and Inktense Blocks.  

Process analysis: I daresay my wacky palettes are not feeling as wacky anymore! It’s getting easier and feeling natural to use unnatural hues because I know they will serve me well as long as I get the values right. I’m also seeing that I don’t have much use for the lightest value range because I tend to fall back on paper white as the lightest value. The pink sky at Maple Leaf Park was fun, but the messy application detracted; I prefer paper white to that.

Most important, I feel liberated using whatever colors I want (as determined by values) and not being tied to designated triads, complements or temperature. The key for me is to keep the palette limited – no more than four or five hues at a time – so that I’m not tempted to toss in colors randomly. I think a narrow, cohesive palette always serves my streamlined style best.

That’s not a new insight; it’s more like confirmation of something I’ve been doing all along, but with more traditional guidelines like triads. Although I didn’t learn any of this directly from Germanier, I must give a nod to his odd selection of pencils and demo that sparked this line of thinking. That’s worth every penny I paid for the set, even if I never use it again.

Derwent Inktense Blocks tuck nicely into the Sendak slots. Friction and their size keep them from getting pushed down too deeply to retrieve easily, which can be a nuisance with short tools.

Taking My Wacky Palette Outdoors: Maple Leaf Park

 

1/17/26 Maple Leaf Park

We’ve been enjoying a solid run of dry, sunny days – a weird weather pattern we often get around mid-January. Temps can drop into the mid-30s overnight but warm up to the mid-50s by afternoon. As you might guess, we urban sketchers are loving it!

It means I’ve finally had opportunities to take my wacky, values-based palette outdoors for some real urban sketching. (Although I know being inside cafés and other locations is also urban sketching, it doesn’t  scratch the itch I feel all winter.)

When I see sunshine, my first stop is usually Maple Leaf Park. I’ve sketched there so many times that most views have become “nothing” to me. By that, I mean that it takes something like a new palette to give me a nudge and see the park with fresh eyes. In addition, the “nothingness” is actually helpful in seeing values instead of subjects.

The pale blue water tower was almost the same color and value as the sky, but the sky was a bit darker blue. I used pink and pale chartreuse, the two light values in my current palette, for those. Then I used the two darkest hues, blue and violet, for everything else. It’s wacky, but I like it. 

Using pink and pale green also solves a dilemma I’ve had many times when sketching this scene: How to show contrast between the water tower and the sky when they are so similar in both hue and value (which, I suppose, was the design intention – trying to make the tower less obtrusive).

What I didn’t like is my messy dry-on-wet application of Caran d’Ache Neocolor II for the sky. I think I should have used my tried-and-true “licking” technique as I always used to for skies. Note to self for next time. Also, I realize now that I forgot to add a layer of a midtone crayon to darken the grass as I had intended!