Peek-a-Boo View

 

5/12/26 Olympic Mountains from downtown Edmonds

Meeting a friend for lunch in Edmonds, I arrived early so that I could make a sketch to give to her. My intention was to walk around town or even the beach to find a subject, but just after I parked, I glimpsed this peek-a-boo view of the Olympics between buildings.

After lunch, we took a long walk along the beach, and snow-covered Mt. Baker was in her full glory. Although this peak is not too much farther from Seattle than Mt. Rainier is (though in the opposite direction), I don’t know of any viewpoint in Seattle where Baker is visible. It was a gift to see her from Edmonds. 

Mt. Baker from Edmonds beach.

Although Ruth and I had stayed in touch through holiday cards and occasionally on Facebook, we hadn’t spent time together in more than 20 years. A couple of months ago when I was ArtSpot’s featured artist, she saw my name on the promotional flier and surprised me by dropping by! We promised to get together before another couple of decades went by. Thinking about recent regrets when I didn’t act soon enough, I texted Ruth the very next morning to plan this meetup. I’m finally heeding the lessons that life keeps trying to teach me.

The whole day was one gift after another.

Komorebi

 

5/11/26 Ballard neighborhood

The Japanese term komorebi is translated as “sunlight leaking through trees.” (Japanese has so many perfect singular terms to describe sensory information that requires numerous, somewhat clumsy words to do the same job in English.) Whenever I see it, I can’t resist trying to capture it in a sketch, and it’s always a challenge.

Media notes: My recent use of Caran d’Ache Neocolor II water-soluble wax pastels along with water-soluble pencils has been an interesting learning curve. Neo II’s wax base can act as a resist if they are applied to paper first, which makes applying colored pencils over it tricky. When I use only watercolor pencils, it’s a no-brainer to pile on various colors at will, but putting Neo II into the mix requires a little planning.

In this sketch, the dark green is a Cd’A Museum Aquarelle pencil, and the bright yellow-green leaves are a Neo II crayon. I had to remember to apply the pencil first.

The trunk and limbs were a different pile-up: First I used a Sepia Neo II crayon to draw the tree with the “licking” method as if painting with traditional watercolors. My plan was to let that dry and then apply pencil over it (that’s one way that the resist effect can be avoided). But then I changed my mind, and while the Sepia was still wet, I went over it with an Indigo Blue Neo II. I like the mix of warm/cool as well as the smooth (the wash of Neo II) with the textured (dry Neo II).

For many years, I was a purist about using water-soluble colored pencils as my only coloring medium, at least on location. I seem to be turning into a mixed-media sketcher without my conscious intention!

Green Shakeup

 

Audition of natural green Neocolor II, Inktense and Museum Aquarelle

After a couple of weeks of being dissatisfied with my daily-carry selection of greens, I decided it was time for a total shakeup. I pulled all the greens out of my bag – Caran d’Ache Neocolor II crayons (which had been doing the heavy lifting of greens lately) and one Cd’A Museum Aquarelle pencil. Then I went through all my Neocolor II crayons, Museum Aquarelle pencils and Derwent Inktense pencils and selected the more natural greens that would be useful in my Pacific Northwest urban landscape. The image at top of post is the selection I auditioned. Below are the swatches.

The finalists are checkmarked.

Many were easy to eliminate after applying water. Especially among Neo II and Inktense, many greens look natural in their dry state, but once activated, they become almost garishly bright and less natural. I made the first cut below.

Among these finalists, the checkmarked greens went into my daily-carry bag.

The ones I checkmarked above are my final cut, currently in my daily-carry.

On an errand in South Lake Union, I made a sketch to test the new green palette. Also referred to as Amazontown (at least by me), SLU is mostly an ultra-modern, glassy, urban village, but Denny Park does offer a fringe of green. I enjoy finding compositions that contrast steel and glass with organic foliage. The unique accordion-folded shape of the Skyglass Apartment Building caught my eye behind Denny’s tallest trees.  

5/9/26 Skyglass Apartments and Denny Park, South Lake Union

So far, I like the way these greens go together straight out of the pencil/crayon. I hope I can push myself, though, to find more interesting blends by introducing non-greens. It’s that constant tension between wanting to stay “real” with nature – and not. Maybe some red complements to dull the greens? Maybe adding blue instead of leaning on that dark bluish-green I love so much for conifers? My summer challenge begins.

Abstract Colors, Abstract Shapes

 

4/29/26 Maple Leaf neighborhood (This house, which looks more like a beachfront hotel than a residence, is actually dark brown, but I had no problem turning it blue-violet, which has become a favorite dark in my palette. On the other hand, I felt compelled to color the trees around it in their natural hues.)

As Colin Woodward’s YouTubes have made me think more consciously about abstraction, I’ve come to realize that some types of abstraction come more easily to me than others. The textures and shapes of trees and foliage, for example, are easier to abstract than their hues, which I feel compelled to make as natural as possible (I talked about this a bit in yesterday’s post, too).

On the other hand, humanmade shapes likes houses and cars are more challenging to abstract, but it’s easy to use non-realistic (or non-real) colors to depict them.

5/3/26 Maple Leaf neighborhood (With some difficulty, I tried to abstract the cars as much as possible. The blur of foliage was easier to abstract by simply focusing on values.)

Strangest of all is that it’s easier to abstract both shapes and colors when I work from photo references (as below) than from life. It should all be the same to my brain, yet whenever I sketch from life, I feel I must be more life-like. (As is often the case, my brain can be annoying.)

4/15/26 photo reference (Both shapes and colors are easier to abstract when I draw from a photo)

Hacked flat waterbrush

In somewhat related news: Woodward, a painter in various media, uses many types of “real” brushes (he’s too polite to say, but I can tell that he eschews the waterbrush and keeps one around only for emergency use). One of his favorites is a flat wash brush. Although I have no intention of using real brushes on location, he inspired me to dig out a waterbrush I had hacked several years ago. It’s a standard Kuretake waterbrush with a flat edge that I cut (with some difficulty) at an angle. I goofed around with it at the time to make portraits, then forgot about it.

I’m glad I kept it! The point is finer than a Kuretake medium-size round waterbrush, which is my go-to, and it has come in handy a couple of times for details. More useful, though, is the angled flat edge, which enables activating a large area of foliage, for example, without getting the dreaded dab-dab-dab look that can occur when using a round Kuretake. (In fact, avoiding the dab-dab-dab look was what led me to start using a spritzer to activate foliage years ago.) It might just be a novelty, but I’m keeping it in my bag for now.

Northlake Commons (and Green Disgruntlement)

 

5/7/26 Northlake Commons

Mary Jean recently introduced me to a newish business complex near the north end of Lake Union just off the Burke-Gilman Trail. Northlake Commons still looks largely unoccupied, but all the better to explore the huge public spaces. Best of all, the complex has been beautifully landscaped (approved by MJ, a retired landscape architect) to soften the hard edges of the surrounding modern architecture. If you stand at the top of a stairway, you’ll see peek-a-boo views of Lake Union and the downtown skyline. (I see a USk Seattle outing here in my future.)

First I wanted to continue experimenting with varying textures and colors of greenery by focusing on one of several weeping cedar trees at the foot of a stairway (top of post). It’s one of my favorite types of composition with organic foliage against hard, built environments.

I considered sketching the lake view from the top of that stairway, but I wanted to get closer. Across the street, I discovered that one of the peek-a-boos was a tiny pocket park with a bench and even a picnic table. Hidden from the sidewalk, it must be a well-kept secret: That afternoon, it was just me and a family of Canada geese.

Lake Union from a tiny pocket park

Color notes: I’m unhappy with my current selection of green water-soluble materials. For many years, I had used a go-to trio of Caran d’Ache Museum Aquarelles that went well together, but growing tired of it was what prompted my lengthy exploration of primary triads several years ago. I wanted to get out of that rut.

Eventually I drifted back to the tried-and-true, but then my more recent discovery of designer Germanier’s surprising color choices led to my “wacky” palette experiments. Although I’m hoping that inspiration will still guide me now, when it comes to foliage, I always feel the tension between wanting to be true to nature and wanting to push myself.

Lots of greens, none quite right

My current dissatisfaction with greens is mostly due to my love of Caran d’Ache Neocolor II water-soluble crayons. Despite its wide green range (all of which I own), I can’t seem to find a trio (light, medium, dark values) that go well together. In addition, I also like to have a dark, cool green to take care of all the Pacific Northwest conifers fringing any horizon, and Neo II doesn’t have one that’s just right for that, either. Hence, I ended up with a nearly-turquoise green on the sunny edges of the weeping cedar which I made attempts to dull with a mossy green that I don’t like, either.

Using only Neo IIs for foliage wasn’t going to cut it. Since I’m trying to avoid my Museum Aquarelle green rut (sadly, MA’s range of greens is inadequate), it’s time to pull out Derwent Inktense Pencils. Although I went through an infatuation with Inktense a few years back, it had faded. However, seeing Colin Woodward’s use of Inktense revived the spark. Stay tuned for my green overhaul.

Working Toward Abstraction

 

4/30/26 Volunteer Park

Sometimes the all-mighty algorithm finally gets it right.

With my reignited love for Caran d’Ache Neocolor II water-soluble crayons, I’ve been looking around for unique or unusual ways that urban sketchers or mixed-media plein air artists are using them.

For quite a while, I wasn’t very inspired. A lot of YouTubers are swatching all the colors for their audience, but I wasn’t seeing much art that involved unique approaches or techniques.

Eventually Colin Woodward popped up in my YouTube feed. Primarily a watercolor and acrylic painter, the Irish artist has lately been exploring both Neocolor II crayons and Derwent Inktense pencils – and he sometimes takes them out for plein air work. A-ha – finally something new and appealing! I’ve been bingeing on his videos ever since.

Although he’s done a few urban scenes, most of his landscapes are of northern Ireland’s lovely woods and streams. His spare, abstract style involves nuanced brushwork to activate water-soluble pigments; in other words, he’s applying water the way a watercolor painter would. One thing I really like about his informative demos is that he explains subtleties like why he changed the grip on his crayon or chose a particular brush at that moment.

Without trying to emulate his brushwork style (which involves a lot of nice watercolor brushes that I don’t intend to use, especially in the field), I tried a sketch at Volunteer Park (top of post). (This type of multi-layered scene of different types of trees is exactly what I was practicing from home recently.) I used my same old waterbrush – but more actively than I typically would. For years now, my primary means of activating color in trees and other foliage has been to spritz the page lightly with water. I like the organic look that results – most of the time. But other times I’ve lost control of the amount of water or direction of the spray.

Central to my sketch is the dense foliage of a magnificent sequoia. That’s very different from the lighter, airier foliage of deciduous trees that I have watched Woodward draw. Still, I tried to be more conscious of the tree’s form as I activated in a more controlled manner.

5/1/26 Maple Leaf neighborhood

What my sketch above lacks is Woodward’s abstract elegance. The next day, still thinking of Woodward’s northern Irish landscapes, I stopped on my walk for a typical Tina landscape (about as far from northern Ireland as I could get!): a Maple Leaf alley, at right. In an A6-size Hahnemühle sketchbook, it’s difficult to do any kind of detail with chunky Neocolor crayons, so all I could do was make smudges of color for the trash cans. I like that forced abstraction!

Though my baby steps may not be obvious, I’ve been working toward greater abstraction for a while now. Sometimes it comes out because I’m cold and need to work extra fast. It’s a lot easier when I’m working from reference photos, I discovered. I can set myself an assignment to be looser and more abstract and then focus on that task in the comfort of my home. On location, I have so much “reality” in front of me that I tend to switch on auto-pilot urban sketching, which always comes out tighter and more “real.”

Detail from on-location comics

Another thing I’ve observed about my own process is that the comic-y, line-drawing sketches (example at left) I’ve been making the past couple of years go a long way in satisfying my need for capturing “reality” with no need for abstraction. The drawings are tight and descriptive for a reason, and I like them that way. Sometimes when I do both types in the same location (these sketches from a recent drink & draw are a good example), the part of me with a need for tightness relaxes and allows me to be more abstract. That insight is a big personal win!

My goal for this spring and summer, when I tend to use more color, will be to push myself a bit harder toward abstraction on location. Maybe Woodward’s inspiration will be the nudge I need.

Bittersweet at Gas Works Park

 

5/2/26 Cranes are poised for destruction at Gas Works Park

Back in February when I participated in a “heart bomb” for Gas Works Park, the decision to dismantle some of the historic structures had been tabled by the city. There was still hope to find alternative solutions that would address safety concerns while retaining the structures. 

The usual park residents

Then in April the Historic Seattle organization reported that one Seattle department had ordered another city department to remove “character-defining features (catwalks, platforms, railings, ladders, pipes, etc.), or “appurtenances,” on the iconic towers by May 15. It seems a decision had been made quickly without the knowledge or involvement of landmarks preservation organizations (see the full story and context at the link above).

USk Seattle had been thinking of a different location for our May 2 outing for International Urban Sketchers Week, but we made a quick decision to meet at Gas Works Park instead. We had to sketch ASAP if we wanted to capture as much of the original structures before they were forever changed.

Knowing that it would be the last time we’d see the gas works as they had always been, it was a bittersweet outing, and USk Seattle came out in full force. The blow was somewhat softened by the amazing weather: Temps in the low 70s with sunshine and a soft breeze off Lake Union! I was among the many sketchers who sat or stood comfortably in full sun without feeling too warm. What a treat!

I stood at the top of Kite Hill for most of my sketches so that I could include the backside of the gas works, where cranes were already in place to dismantle pieces that could be climbed. While it’s tragic that several trespassers have fallen to their deaths over the years, it’s important to note that the entire area has always been surrounded by fencing with signs everywhere prohibiting entry and climbing.

It’s also a great spot to capture kite fliers, people and dogs enjoying the sunshine at the crest of the hill.

Top of Kite Hill

Because I’m feeling sentimental about my favorite city park, I’m showing below some of my many sketches of Gas Works Park from the past 11 years.

1/19/26

4/18/25

9/17/22

9/2/21

6/22/17 The piping and catwalks that cast these cool shadows will soon be gone.

7/2/16

9/9/15

5/2/26

Hing Hay Gateway

 

4/17/26 Hing Hay Park, Chinatown-International District

Meeting friends for a late lunch in the Chinatown-International District, I arrived early and stopped at Hing Hay Park. Although I’ve sketched the bright red Gateway sculpture at the park entrance many times, it never ceases to be challenging. It’s painted the same solid vermilion on every face, but each face reflects the light differently.

I like the vivid contrasts of both the complementary colors and of nature: One tree shimmered with fresh leaves while the other stood stoically winter-bare. I felt the same dichotomy: When I left the house in the morning, it was cold enough to grab my down parka. By early afternoon when I sketched in the sun, I was too warm.

Sketchbook notes: Grumpy about this Stillman & Birn Zeta’s awkward and less versatile landscape format, I’m still determined to fill it up as quickly as possible. This panorama landscape view turned out to be ideal for it, so I was a little less grumpy. It’s still awkward to hold a landscape book, though.

Maple Leaf Park Gazebo

 

4/10/26 Maple Leaf Park playground and gazebo

After I had posted a sketch of Mt. Rainier from Maple Leaf Park, I received a comment on Flickr asking how the gazebo was doing. Gazebo? I walk around Maple Leaf Park several times a week – how could I miss a gazebo? Then I realized that the “gazebo” was in reference to the structure in the lower part of the park where the playground is, where I rarely walk. I also hadn’t thought of it as a gazebo because it’s a very open structure compared to most gazebos (when I think of a gazebo, it’s something I duck into for shelter in case of unexpected rain). When I did a little googling to learn more about the gazebo (and found this article), I realized that the person who had commented on Flickr is one of the artists, Nick Lyle.

Gazebo detail

All of that made me realize that I had never sketched the gazebo! The next day, I immediately corrected that. The 10-foot-tall, forged steel structure is very airy with birds, plants and other natural motifs. Now I know why I hadn’t sketched it before – it’s very challenging to make the delicate, arching “branches” show up in front of all the deep foliage behind it.

I stood inside the completely open gazebo (no rain shelter here!), which is “evocative of the web of life that connects both the urban and natural worlds,” to sketch a cormorant detail. As often happens, I discovered that I hadn’t appreciated or even noticed those details until I sketched them.

Cherry Blossom Pink Flamingo

 

4/9/26 Chilean flamingoes, Woodland Park Zoo

Since I park on that side of the zoo, I like to catch the
Humboldt penguins on my way out.

On yet another gorgeous day (we were treated to eight of them consecutively last week), I went fitness walking through Woodland Park Zoo. Silly me – I forgot that it was still spring break, which gave me déjà vu of my visit to the Smithsonian National Zoo. (I exaggerate; Seattle’s zoo will never be as crowded as DC’s panda exhibit was, although as I was walking out, the attendant told me that she had counted 6,000 visitors so far that day – a combination of spring break and several field trips.)

I usually avoid the Chilean flamingo exhibit because it smells so bad there. However, the cherry blossom pink crayons in my bag compelled me to use them (holding my breath). At least half the large population on exhibit were a pale grayish-brown instead of pink. The keeper who was washing out their feeding tanks informed us that the dull-colored ones were still young. When they matured, they would take on the brilliant pink hues that flamingoes are known for.

Detail showing the "licked" color wash and textured details added with water-soluble pencil. 
I used a Derwent Drawing pencil for shading.

Technical notes: On a whim, I colored the flamingo by using a waterbrush to “lick” the end of a Raspberry Red Caran d’Ache Neocolor II crayon and painting it like watercolor. Then while that was still wet, I used orange and red Museum Aquarelle pencils for some feather details. I don’t know why I don’t use those techniques together more often – I love the look of the smooth wash combined with texture. Now that the crayon holder I MacGyver’d gives me easy access to a “watercolor palette,” I have to remember to take advantage of it more often.

Have I mentioned lately how much I love Neocolor II crayons? That’s not new – I’ve loved them for many years. The difference now is that I’m able to use them on location, so my long-time crush has turned into a committed relationship. Although I wrote a thorough review several years ago, I might need to write a fresh love letter sometime soon.

Still Chasing Pink

 

4/5/26 Prairie fire crabapple, Green Lake

Cherry tree, Green Lake

Easter Sunday was another spring day of the type we wait six long, dark months for: Blue sky with temps in the low 60s! We all knew we’d be back to our normal programming (gray and back down to the 50s) soon enough, but it was a well-deserved treat.

When I got back home from DC, I was disappointed to see that the Yoshino cherries had shed most of their petals. I took a walk to Green Lake, determined to chase whatever pink might remain. I did spot other cherry varieties that still had most of their blossoms (at left). What really stunned me, though, was this spectacular crabapple that I later learned is of the “prairie fire” variety (top of post)! I noted its location so that I’ll be able to find it again next year.

Higan cherry

Prairie fire crabapple

Although I spend most of early spring peeping and sketching petals, I also adore spotting tiny, new leaves on trees. Blossoms are fleeting, but leaves promise many more months of good sketching weather ahead (yes, I relate everything in nature to how it might affect my sketching potential). Although I don’t really celebrate Easter, these leaves felt like true signs of hope and rebirth. 

Japanese maple (hand for scale)

Norway maple

A Brief Quad Hanami

 

3/26/26 University of Washington Quad

On a jam-packed day, I barely had an hour to squeeze in at the University of Washington Quad, but how could I miss sketching peak cherry blossoms with USk Seattle? Arriving an hour-and-a-half late, I quickly singled out one tree so that I’d have a sketch to throw down (above). Of course, it was magnificently much wider than I allowed room for on the page.

After the throwdown, I went back into the throng for one more quick one: A gnarled, moss-covered branch as thick as an entire tree trunk itself and happy hanami participants enjoying the sunny (but cold) day.

Obligatory sakura selfie

Dibble on Crown Hill

3/22/26 Crown Hill neighborhood

When Sunday afternoon turned out dry and even partly sunny, it was a good opportunity to check out a couple more of my favorite pink streets. Although Dibble Northwest on Crown Hill is a narrow, quiet and somewhat messy residential street (a broken-down basketball hoop has had a prominent spot on the block for years), every spring it turns into a pink fairyland. Not the grand fairyland of Sunset Hill (see tomorrow’s post), but more like the fairy who insists on wearing dirty jeans with her tiara. No matter – the trees are still lovely.

Like the cherries on Capitol Hill, these were not yet at their peak, but they were lazily working up to it. I think the party begins this weekend.

Employee Appreciation Day

3/6/26 Top Pot Doughnuts, Wedgwood neighborhood (Beware all who speak very loudly during Zoom meetings in cafes: You will be drawn unflatteringly.)

Before I retired, I had been self-employed for many years as a marketing copywriter. Although I was a pretty good boss of myself, I didn’t show enough appreciation back then for my hard-working employee, nor did I know about Employee Appreciation Day (first Friday in March). In fact, the day was off my radar until I was informed of it by Top Pot Doughnuts suggesting that doughnuts would be an appropriate way to express appreciation to one’s employees. ‘Nuff said.

Now I have another annual holiday to observe with a doughnut!

Material notes: If I were getting a doughnut for eating enjoyment only, I would probably get a chocolate-dipped Bismarck or an apple fritter. On this day, however, I wanted to test the plum and cherry blossom palette I had picked out in Caran d’Ache Neocolor II crayons, so I chose a suitably pink raspberry-glazed raised. The dark purple Derwent Inktense pencil is for blossom shadows. I’ve tried many different media – watercolor, gouache, water-soluble colored pencils, water-soluble crayons, opaque markers – for always-challenging blossoming trees, never to my complete satisfaction. This year I’m using Neocolor II crayons again, if only because I have an easy way to carry them now. 

Media Mishaps at the Zoo

3/2/26 Grizzly and brown bears, Woodland Park Zoo (Derwent Drawing pencil in Stillman & Birn Beta sketchbook)

This is the time of year when we are occasionally surprised by delightfully sunny and even warmish days. Although it was still cold in the morning, the afternoon was just right for one of my favorite fitness-walking locations: Woodland Park Zoo.

Starting in the opposite direction from my usual zoo route, I spent some time on the Living Northwest Trail. I’m often disappointed in this section because many animals like to stay hidden, but on this afternoon, I saw and/or sketched almost all the residents.

Despite being the most frustrating, my favorites to attempt to sketch were the young bear pair, Fern and Juniper (Fern is actually a grizzly, not a brown, I learned later). I watched for quite a while as they wrestled and played continuously, their heads often buried in each other’s long fur. Waiting patiently (more patiently than most visitors, who snapped videos and then moved on quickly, just like at art museums), I drew whatever feature or shape I could capture in a second or two. When the bears flipped over and revealed their heads, I quickly refined what I’d drawn before (top of post). Challenging but so much fun!

The lazily grazing and dozing mountain goats were no challenge at all by comparison.

Mountain goats (Caran d'Ache Museum Aquarelle and Derwent Inktense pencils in Hahnemuhle sketchbook)

Huckleberry, the sole male elk, and one of his mates were resting together by a tree – also easy. However, this is when my media mishaps began. I hadn’t sketched with Tombow Dual markers in a long time and had given most away during my downsizing. Somehow I found one in my hand recently, so I put it in my bag on a whim. (I used one at the Cocoa Legato open mic recently, too.)

Elk (Tombow Dual marker in Hahnemuhle sketchbook)

Sketching these elk reconfirmed what I don’t really care for about Tombows. Although I do enjoy being able to do quick and easy shading by washing the water-soluble ink (a favorite technique for many years), I don’t like the stiff lines that the hard tips on these markers make, especially when drawing animals and other organic subjects. I much prefer a fluid, “hairy” brush. Trying to recap the pen as I was thinking about this, the cap slipped out of my hand and disappeared between the boards in the trail walkway (and we all know that the most valuable part of a marker is its cap; without it, the pen is useless).

I ended my visit with a favorite exhibit, the Humboldt penguins of South America. Luckily for me, it was feeding time. The keeper carefully and fairly distributed fish to each penguin (calling some by name). Unlike most birds around food, the penguins crowded around the keeper but were very orderly, waiting their turn (imagine gulls or crows waiting their turn!).

Humboldt penguins (Pentel Sign brush pen, Pitt Artist Pen, Inktense pencil in Hahnemuhle sketchbook)

I knew my black Pentel brush pen was running dry, but I hoped that I could squeak through the sketch – barely. To make up for it, I pulled out a gray Faber-Castell Pitt Artist Pen, and by poor coincidence, it was nearly dry, too!

All I can say is: Thank goodness for colored pencils!