What I Learned From A Year on the Job Search

Posted on April 28, 2013 by admin

The barn that William Boeing started building airplanes in. Now located at the Museum of Flight.

For the past year, I was on a search for a full time job. Then, two weeks ago, I began working full time for Edlund Associates, a landscape architecture design build firm. The road to this point was rough. Over the last year, I held four temporary positions, sent over 150 applications and attended numerous interviews. Throughout this process, I found myself returning to a number of lessons that kept me motivated.

You should see something new every day. This could mean going for a walk in your neighborhood, traveling to a foreign country or meeting someone for the first time. I spent the last year exploring Seattle and documenting some of my journeys on this blog in sketches and photos. In addition, I met dozens of interesting and amazing people, from landscape architects to truck drivers. I would encourage everyone on a job search to take a step out their door every day and see what happens.

Tomistoma machikanense is torn between eating the students above or below.

Besides getting out, we all need to take time for ourselves. During the Vietnam War, Buddhist monks, led by Thich Nhat Hanh, would sit between the opposing sides to stop the violence. To handle the stress, the monks had a day off to take care of personal matters such as cleaning their homes, doing laundry, reflecting on their life and gaining inspiration from the sutras. Like these monks, we should all remember to take time for our personal well fare and development.

Option #2: This scheme is more open and emphasizes the Taihu rock arrangements. Pine trees add a sculptural element to the garden. The bottom of the planter would be filled with Rubus pentalobus.

Besides themselves, the monks also made time on their day off to talk with their families and friends. You still have friends, family and colleagues even if you do not have a job. This year, I attended my grandmother’s 80th birthday. I joined the Seattle Urban Sketchers and the Association of Professional Landscape Designers (APLD). I also volunteered with the Washington chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) and the Seattle Chinese Garden. Career books call this networking, but I always find it easier to think of networking as being yourself.

Finally, do not lose your imagination. It is easy to become cynical, and believe you are a tragic character stuck in your role. However, your narrative is what you create. Over the last year I read 22 books, saw 38 films, listened to dozens of albums, lectures and speeches. In addition, I generated an estimated 100,000 words, over 100 images and helped build several gardens. Never lose your ability to dream of a perfect world today and build it tomorrow.

A majority of the Living Room’s space is taken up by seating for reading and computer use. The Living Room also houses the library’s periodical section and collections of recreational reading materials, including science fiction, fantasy, mysteries, fiction, westerns, romance, audio books, and graphic novels.

I list imagination last because without imagination there is no hope for the future. There will always be people who say you can’t. There will always be obstacles. Hardest of all, there will always be a nagging doubt inside you. You have to believe in your dream, trust your network, take time for yourself (especially when things fail) and take chances. I do not promise success, only a great adventure.

Want to learn more about Thich Nhat Hanh? I would suggest his book The Miracle of Mindfulness: An Introduction to the Practice of Meditation.

Flying High with the Seattle Urban Sketchers

Posted on April 2, 2013 by admin

Like a massive piston, a net support juts from the floor of the building.

The circus is always in town on Seattle’s Sixth Avenue. The Emerald City Trapeze Arts hosts classes for adults and children in the aerial arts, including trapeze, rope work, gymnastics and more. They also hold shows in which teachers and advanced students entertain revelers. The result is a hidden carnival world with in the emerald city.

I recently had the pleasure of visiting this school with the Seattle Urban Sketchers and drawing the space. While I tried to capture some of the students in flight, my best sketches captured a single detail while suggesting or blurring out the plethora of action in the space. This was no easy task given the school’s eclectic collection and hectic atmosphere.

The school is located in Seattle’s Sodo neighborhood. Seattle’s industrial district, Sodo has a gritty charm during the weekend when the area closes down. You can be the only driver on the area’s wide boulevards, eerily similar to a scene from the Walking Dead. This disconnect lends an other-worldly feel to the school, as if it were hidden away with in the city.

Suggestion the motion of the students with in the gallery space.

Suggesting the motion of the students with in the gallery space.

In the school’s warehouse,old growth timbers hold up a three story gallery and the trapeze with balconies overlooking the space. Thick curtains partition the space into rooms filled with an assortment of nick-knacks and props. This included a wealth of hunting trophies, masks, feather boas, and a massive dragon plant. Filigree and glitter are kept in neat piles while empty bottles of tanqueray and Pabst suggested the good times this space has seen. The detail was stupefying for an artist.

A massive dragon plant (Dracaena) hovers over a fellow sketcher in an alcove off the main gallery.

I am working on my sense of perspective, so I ignored the fine details. However, all of the stories, beams and struts were nearly impossible to capture. My best drawings from this session demonstrated the importance of selecting one detail to focus on in a drawing at the expense of all else. In the drawing below, I decided to capture the sense of the net beneath the trapeze. This simplified the drawing process and defined the gallery space through an indirect method.

The trapeze net defining the main gallery space.

The Emerald City Trapeze Arts building is definitely worth a visit if you want a break from Seattle’s usual cultural offerings. The combination of grace, outlandish costumes and the school’s location in an old warehouse leave you feeling as if you were in a steam punk novel. In addition, the school is a wonderful exercise in drawing, rendering and observation for interested artists and designers.

A skeletal study sketch of the main gallery, considering the perspective.

A skeletal study sketch of the main gallery, considering the gallery’s perspective.

A Visit to Marenako’s

Posted on March 24, 2013 by admin

Entrance

As you drive east from I-90′s western terminus in Seattle, you slowly climb up the Cascade Mountains’ foothills . Then you turn a bend on the Issaquah city limit and find yourself immersed in dense second growth forests on hills rising to the sky. Hidden in this growth is one of Seattle’s premium rock yards, Marenako’s.

Located off exit 22 on I-90 in Preston, Washington, Marenako’s offers a wonderland of stone and masonry. I visited to find a small piece of basalt with a bowl top to incorporate into a rockery. However, Marenako’s yard offers a wealth of materials and ideas for designers to draw inspiration from.

Basalt with bowl top

Marenako’s maintains a diverse stone inventory. There were plenty of common stone types such as granite, basalt and Pennsylvania slate. However, the stone yard featured an array of unusual stones as well. A stalagmite from Mexico hung in the company’s offices and a chocolate brown slate in the yard looked good enough to eat.

Chocolate Slate from Montana

Besides natural rock, the yard had a number of cut and carved pieces. There were several Japanese inspired lanterns and water bowls. Buddha sculptures from a variety of traditions laughed and contemplated. European style sculpture included an angel like figure emerging from a stone and more abstract pieces. In addition, there were carved pieces with no clear purpose such as a flight of steps carved from a single piece of granite.

Tea Ceremony Basin

Stairs to no where

Finally, the rock yard had two areas demonstrating applications for cut and uncut stone blocks. I especially admired the shelter they had on site. The structure is built from cedar with a stone oven and base. Each post is shaped at the base to the contour of the rock foundation. There was also a particularly beautiful weeping white pine with a bench and an impressive bee hive structure.

Shelter at Marenako’s

Marenako’s is a wonderful experience for anyone looking to incorporate stone work into a construction or design project. The array of stone and demonstration projects will definitely leave you dazed and excited with the possibilities. Just watch out for Marenako’s delivery trucks as they rumble by on their way to Seattle.

Rock Yard

Myoshin-ji’s Tokai-an

Posted on March 11, 2013 by admin

The allusive glimpse through Tokai-an’s gate.

I was recently organizing photos from a trip to Japan in 2010. Most of the temples I visited had a plethora of online information to go with them. However, one temple was a mystery, Tokai-an. I knew I had visited it, but I could not find it online. Tokai-an was like a phantom temple that vanished as soon as I tried to look at it.

Finally, I remembered that Tokai-an is not open to the public, because it is the residence of Myoshin-ji’s abbot. I managed to visit this temple due to the group I was traveling with. Our guide had a long standing relationship with Myoshin-ji and arranged a visit for us.

Tokai-an is a sub-temple of Myoshinji. Myoshinji in turn is a temple complex made up of over 40 sub-temples that practice Rinzai Zen Buddhism. Myoshin-ji is also the headquarters for the Myoshin-ji branch of Rinzai Zen Buddhism, which includes about 6,000 temples globally.

Toaki-an has three gardens within its walls. These gardens represent the three elements that define a human being, according to Buddhism. These three parts are the mind/universe, the soul/ego, and the body.

The Garden of the Mind

The garden of the mind is a rectangle of raked sand without any features. The only ornamentation is a small hand washing basin. While this garden is open to interpretation, I felt it represented the harmonious state of the universe.

“When you think something comes from outside it means only that something appears in your mind. Nothing outside yourself can cause trouble. You yourself make waves in your mind.” Shunryu Suzuki “Zen Mind, Beginners Mind”

The garden of the soul is another rock garden with seven rocks are arranged in a line. The sand is raked in a circular pattern radiating from the central stone. Buddhists scripture describes the soul as a piece of the universe that is briefly split from the whole and causes disruptions in the harmonious nature of the universe, which humans experience as the physical world.

The Garden of the Body

Finally, the garden of the body is filled with lime green moss that covers every level surface in this garden. A large water trough and other rocks provide a counter point to the lush moss and pines in the garden. This represents the human body as a cradle of life and action.

While many other temples in Japan present similar themes, Tokai-an brings these pieces together to form a model of human nature. In addition, the rarity of being able to visit this temple deepens its profound nature. Like the existence it attempts to portray, a visit to Tokai-an is a brief flash that must be appreciated while the opportunity exists. I hope this post was useful to anyone looking for information on this amazing but hidden Japanese garden and temple.

Other Sites On Tokai-an

http://ethanrainwater.wordpress.com/photo/japan/exif_jpeg_picture-45/

http://kyotosummer2012.blogspot.com/2012/07/tokai-gardens-of-mind-body-soul.html

Richard Haag’s Gas Works Park

Posted on March 5, 2013 by admin

Several iterations of the main gasification towers from the west side

I noticed that several visitors arrived at this site after searching for Gas Works Park, Richard Haag or a combination of the two. However, I only mention Gas Works Park and Richard Haag in passing. With the sun returning to Seattle, I decided to correct this by visiting Gas Works Park.

The Seattle Gas Light Company opened a coal gasification plant in 1906 at the north end of Lake Union. The plant converted coal into gas to power indoor lights until the advent of electric bulbs. The gas generated by the plant was also used for cooking, heating homes and powering water heaters. The plant closed in 1956 when Seattle switched to natural gas.

Silhouette of storage tanks

The gas works site was purchased by the City of Seattle in 1962. Debates continued for the next decade about how to handle the gas works site. Park advocates finally won, and the Parks Committee commissioned Richard Haag and Associates to design the new park in 1970. Haag made the radical suggestion to preserve the coal gasification plant and incorporate it into the park design because the plant was the only one of its kind left in the United States.

Many of the park’s supporters were appalled by Haag’s design. The park was originally named Myrtle Edwards Park after the Seattle council member who had advocated for the park and died in a car accident before seeing it completed. In 1972, Myrtle’s family asked for her name to be removed from the park due to the retention of the gas works structures. Instead, Elliot Bay Park was renamed Myrtle Edwards Park in 1976.

The east side of the main gasification towers

Despite the outcry, Gas Works Park opened to the public in 1975. The project was the beginning of a revolution in landscape architecture and won Richard Haag the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) President’s Award of Design Excellence. Today, the preservation and celebration of industrial sites has become common practice around the world. Most recently, I was involved with a pro bono project last October to preserve the first coke ovens in Washington State. Other notable industrial parks include Landschaftspark in Germany and New York’s High Line.

Besides preserving the industrial structures on the site, Gas Works Park was a pioneering project in the reuse of brownfields. The project was also noteworthy as one of the first landscape architecture projects to propose the use of phytoremediation to address contamination on industrial sites.

Today the park is as popular as ever. With great views of downtown Seattle, open fields and access to Lake Union, Gas Works Park is an idyllic spot in Seattle’s urban core. On the day I visited, kids were running around in the play area. Couples were sitting on the benches along the lake shore. And people were flying kites and model helicopters from the top of the kite flying hill. I can only hope that Gas Works Park will be this popular one hundred years from now.

To learn more about Gas Works Park, I would suggest visiting Wikipedia. The Cultural Landscape Foundation also has a good article on Gas Works Park.

A float plane takes off from Lake Union. One of the many experiences at Gas Works Park.

Seattle Urban Sketchers at Saint James Cathedral

Posted on February 27, 2013 by admin

View of the nave and main alter beneath the cathedral’s dome.

The Diocese of Nisqualli was established in Vancouver, Washington on May 31, 1850. For 53 years the diocese was based in Vancouver, but the city’s gradual decline as a economic power house cause the Bishop to move the diocese’s headquarters to the new economic hub of Seattle in 1903. In 1905, construction of the St. James cathedral began, and the diocese was renamed the Archdiocese of Seattle. The cathedral and surrounding grounds continue to serve as the archdiocese’s headquarters today.

On a cold, sunny Saturday, the Seattle Urban Sketchers made a pilgrimage to Saint James Cathedral to draw the stunning structure. I retreated inside to stay warm though the vaulted ceiling offered little insulation. What the building lacked in heat it made up for with soaring arches, vibrant stained glass and a reverent atmosphere. If anything, I found it challenging to choose the details to draw.

The finest view was down the nave. In the sketch above, we can see the main alter at the center of the church beneath the dome’s oculus. Four arms radiate out from the alter to the four cardinal directions with the nave running east west. This dome collapsed in 1916 due to snow loads and was not rebuilt until 1994 when renovations were made to meet the demands of the Vatican 2 reforms.

The cathedral was filled with great detailing. This candelabra is a fine example. The massive fixture was around seven feet tall in brass with elegant filigree.

2013 Northwest Flower and Garden Show Conclusion

Posted on February 24, 2013 by admin

The 2013 Northwest Flower and Garden show concludes this Sunday. The show was a fine opportunity to meet landscape professionals and see the latest developments in the landscaping field. Below are a few of my highlights from the show.

A garden takes shape at what will be the exit for the flower and garden show.

The Wizard of Oz Garden fully realized.

I enjoy this Wizard of Oz garden because it demonstrated the radical transformation that the garden show brings to the convention center. One disadvantage for the flower and garden show is the need to use flowers that come from either bulbs, bushes or trees. The result are gardens like this one that has Dorothy in a field of daffodils instead of poppies.

A prayer wheel on display at the Asia inspired Ip Man Garden.

For those with a spiritual interest, Chris Moench offered spectacular handmade prayer wheels. Based out of Bellingham, Washington, Chris Moench produces these custom made prayer wheels for use in the garden or home as an interactive story device. The prayer wheels also offer a space for users to place their prayers and thoughts in the wheel.

Spectacular forsythia display at the Ikebana International stall.

The show also includes flower arrangements. My favorite flower arrangements were presented by the Seattle Chapter of Ikebana International. Ikebana is the Japanese practice of flower arrangement. This Sogetsu School Style arrangement with forsythia in a vase shaped like a windblown tree was particularly striking.

Welcome to the Jungle!

Besides the Wizard of Oz garden, there were several great gardens at this year’s garden show. Riz Reyes won the founders cup for his exotic plants garden inspired by jungle movies such as King Kong and Indiana Jones. The Arboretum Foundation created a hobbit hole to promote their recently installed New Zeland collection. Finally, someone watched Satuday Night Fever one too many times and got funky with their lighting design to create an outdoor disco floor.

Get down in your very own disco garden.

A hobbit hole in Seattle

Congratulations to all of the people involved with putting on this year’s garden show. It was truly spectacular, and I cannot wait to see what next year brings. Here is wishing you all the best of luck in the new year.

2013 Northwest Flower and Garden Show Set up at the Washington State Convention Center

Posted on February 18, 2013 by admin

A garden takes shape at what will be the exit for the flower and garden show in the convention center’s south lobby.

Ever year hundreds of landscape professionals from around Washington come together and show off their skills at the Northwest Flower and Garden Show. The show is also an opportunity to hear some of the most influential garden thinkers and writers speak. This weekend I had the opportunity to help with the set up for the Flower and Garden show.

The show is hosted in the Washington State Convention Center. The convention center is not my favorite building in the world. The multiple levels are confusing and signage is not clear. However, the space is beautiful in a monumental fashion. The center also ties in well with Lawrence Halprin’s Freeway Park for anyone interested in a landscape history lesson.

Northern entrance to Freeway Park outside the convention center south lobby.

Inside the convention center, the fourth floor’s massive show rooms were transformed into garden retreats. Designers and construction crews worked around the clock to build wooden frameworks, place stone and bring in statuary. I assisted the Washington APLD with fetching pots and a fountain from Fleur de Lis Garden Ornaments.

Trucks haul materials to gardens throughout the show room.

I also helped with unloading the plants for the APLD garden. Because the gardens were not ready for the plants, we stored them against a show room wall. In the following days, the crews will groom and move these of plants into place. The most impressive specimens were a pair of massive palm trees and several six foot New Zealand Flaxes. Dozens of common species filled the space as well.

Tulips and daffodils waiting to be placed at the flower and garden show

A temporary nursery at the flower and garden show holding plants waiting to be brought into the gardens.

I look forward to returning this week to see all of the completed projects. I am sure the show will be an inspiration for the coming year. If you are in Seattle be sure to visit. More information about the show can be found here.

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Greenlake Stroll

Posted on February 14, 2013 by admin

The historic Greenlake Library was funded by Andrew Carnegie and designed by W. Marbury Somervell and Joseph S. Coté.

A hidden emerald, Greenlake sits to the north of downtown Seattle in a bowl formed over 10,000 years ago by glaciers during the last ice age. Today, the lake is ringed by the Greenlake Park. Part of the Olmsted park plan for Seattle, the park’s main feature is a 2.8 mile promenade that meanders along the lake shore. A series of attractions and landscaped areas along the trail make the park a popular area for walking, running and socializing.

View of the Greenlake Community Center and swimming area

The main park area is centered on the Greenlake Community Center. The community center is housed in a utilitarian building built in 1929. The center is surrounded by sports fields, play areas and the neighborhood business district. The business district is notable for housing the historic Greenlake Library and a variety of running stores that serve the local joggers and runners. The community center area also has the primary public boat launching area for the lake and hosts a boat rental shed.

The Bathhouse Theater sits nestled in a copse

Continuing around the lake, you come to the Bathhouse Theatre. The bathhouse structure was built in 1927 to provide a changing area for swimmers. The bathhouse eventually went out of style and was converted to a theatre in 1970. Today, the theatre is home to the Seattle Public Theatre. Tennis Courts, bathrooms and parking are also located around of the Bathhouse.

The Aqua Theater stands on the lake edge with Woodland Park rising up the slope.

The final major feature on Greenlake is the Aqua Theatre. The Aqua Theatre was constructed in 1950 to host events for the first Seafair. Throughout the 50s and 60s, the theatre hosted a variety of cultural events, but saw a gradual decline. A 1969 Grateful Dead concert killed the Aqua Theatre when structural flaws were found in the grand stand structure. In 1970, part of the grand stand was removed and replaced with the Greenlake Small Craft Center. The Small Craft Center is the home of the Greenlake Crew and Seattle Canoe and Kayak Club. The Aqua Theatre area also provides access to Woodland Park, the Zoo and the Greenlake Executive Golf Course.

If you are tired of downtown and want to rub shoulders with Seattle locals, Greenlake Park is the place to visit. You can admire the fine vistas across the lake while people watching or sipping a latte. Greenlake also sits between several of Seattle’s major neighborhoods, including Phinney Ridge with the Woodland Park Zoo, the charming neighborhood of Wallingford and the University District.

2013 Association of Landscape Design Professionals (APLD) Symposium Review

Posted on February 5, 2013 by admin

Planting in summer bloom at the University of Washington’s Center for Urban Horticulture.

On January 30th, a group of green industry professionals gathered to share their insights from the past year and their hopes for the future at the annual Association of Professional Landscape Designers (APLD) symposium. This included landscape architects , landscape designers, landscape contractors, arborists, horticulturalists and ecologists. Besides being a great exchange of ideas, the symposium also featured several wonderful speakers.

Noland Rundquist provided an informative talk about the City of Seattle’s tree policies. As Seattle’s Head City Arborist, Nolan offered a personal explanation of the city’s tree policies with a fare dose of humor. He also announced a new Urban Forest Master Plan for Seattle coming soon. To learn more visit seattle.gov/trees.

Next was Jeff Hushagen with Seattle Tree Preservation Inc. He gave an inspiring talk about the need to preserve trees through thoughtful design and care. My favorite quote from him was, “Trees don’t need pruning. People need pruning.” A lesson we should all remember next time we feel inclined to take a hedge trimmer to our shrubbery.

From the Urban Forest Services and Urban Forest Nursery, Jim Barborinas suggested trees to consider for the new year. His list was filled with fairly standard suggestions. There was a move away from cherries because they have become over used.

Keith Geller presented a retro presentation via slide projector. His love of birds was obvious, though his summary of design concepts was rather simplistic for such a gathering. His collection of taxidermy birds was also quite interesting. I found the Cooper’s Hawk fascinating because Cooper’s Hawks were the first birds of prey I had experience with in an urban environment.

Kathleen Wolf presented her website on biophilia research. This online repository compiles over 1300 original research articles into biophilia and other benefits of nature in the city. This online resource would be invaluable to anyone who needs scientific data to support an argument for incorporating nature into an urban setting. Kathleen Wolf’s website can be visited at the University of Washington’s College of the Environment webpage.

Unfortunately, I had to leave before the last speaker presented. Kern Erwing was presenting on the continuing remediation efforts at the Union Bay Natural Area on the University of Washington Campus. The project is a useful case study for brown field remediation in an urban area.

This Symposium would not have been possible without the dedicated support of the APLD Event Committee. I hope they continue their fantastic work and look forward to the Northwest Flower and Garden Show, coming in February. I also look forward to implementing some of the ideas I gained at the symposium in the upcoming year.

Bingle Studios

Landscape Design, Rendering, Writing