Gas Works Park is an Industrial Relic that has been reshaped into a park with views that are second to none. I’ve now spent the majority of my time in Seattle at the park.
I’ve made 5 paintings there and met dozens of people. In the daytime locals work out or fly kites on “Kite Hill”, of coarse. Tourist come and take pictures (mostly selfies with the Seattle skyline in the background.) My first day there I made two paintings:
The first was all knife and bottle work or pure “Fortunism”. This piece reminded me a lot of the “View from Delores Park”. I love painting city scapes, in a way its a Macro view way to get to know a city. All the districts are in there somewhere waiting to be discovered. Later when I’m lost on purpose wandering the city, i’ll look up and see a building. Having already painted most of the skyscrapers, I can navigate (kinda) via my painting. “There’s that crane, or big diamond shaped building from the middle of the painting.” A strange familiarity.
This painting was made with the help of my new friends from day camp. At first there was just one on-looker then I turned around about an hour later and found that my audience had grown! The pressure was on, these kids expected to see the piece completed before lunch, and they weren’t shy about their “real-time” critiques either.
I didn’t meet the “lunch time ” deadline expected by the daycampers. But I caught up with them after I finished. They stopped their soccer match to check it out. They gave me props and went back to day-camping. A few of them asked how much! Always fun stuff from kid critiques!
Because I finished with enough daylight to make another piece, I dove right into a “mini” work. These little buggers are all brush work (12″x14″) Smaller that I’m used to but I learned that can be a good thing. I try “squeeze” as much info into these smaller paintings as I can.
Minutes before I finshed, I met Veronica and her family. She told me that her son had rented a kayak and that the whole family took a trip in the Amphibious plane that dotted the sky in the painting. With her Seattle trip captured on canvas, she didn’t hesitate to buy the piece right off the easel (after I signed it of coarse) I love when that happens!
That was a great way to finish up a day painting! Later that night I painted the ” Public Market Place” sign, again. The “PM” version. Long days, well worth the effort.
