The Market is “Ours” Again

 

10/14/26 The Pike Place Market's Secret Garden

We’d been waiting impatiently all summer for the cruise ships to go away so that it would be safe to go back to “our” Pike Place Market again! Roy, Mary Jean and I are a bit possessive about one of our favorite places to sketch because the mobs of tourists who descend every summer make it difficult to even walk through. It was a joy to walk easily and freely in the popular Market thoroughfares and even explore lesser-known corners.

Rachel the Pig is where the most tourists like to stop and pose for photos.

One such place was The Secret Garden (top of post). Although it’s open to the public, you have to know how to get to it. I was delighted to meet Gardenia, a bright yellow pig, in the garden. (Not to be mistaken for Rachel, the pig near the famed fish-tossing fishmongers, or Billy, at the Market’s northend. With slots in their backs, they all have the job of collecting donations for the Pike Place Market Foundation.) We also discovered several newish cafés and shops and even one not-quite-open restaurant with view seating. I made lots of notes for future outings.  

By noon when the sun started to appear, we went to the Waterfront Overlook, where I made the kind of composition I probably would not have if I’d been using colored pencils or crayons instead of markers (below). Something about the brush markers I’ve been using for InkTober seems to invite me to choose scenes like this that are more about tone than color. It’s interesting how I choose different subject matter or compositions depending on the medium I plan to use.

Waterfront Overlook

After lunch we sketched around the Market’s Post Alley, which is always mostly in shade. Frustrated by having only one neutral midtone, I had to make the famous “Post Alley” sign green, even though it’s really a pale blue (but in deep shade). I did like making the white-ish buildings bright yellow, though, emphasizing the sunlight on them.

The Market's famous Post Alley

Ahhh – it’s great to have “our” Market back again!

Good to be back!