Today, I went for a bike ride to my neighborhood park in Seattle, Volunteer Park on Capitol Hill. Volunteer Park has been the backdrop of a great portion of my life, having lived near the park for over thirty years now. As a painter, Volunteer Park has provided me with much inspiration.
Isamu Noguchi’s “Black Sun” temporarily shrouded in the memory of Chris Cornell, 2017. Volunteer Park, Seattle.
I made a few sketches of an area of the park in front of the Seattle Asian Art Museum where there are two ponds of lily pads. Towering above between the two ponds, the monumental "Black Sun" black granite sculpture created in 1969 by Japanese/American sculptor Isamu Noguchi.
Above is the oil sketch I made tonite from my sketches and a few reference photographs.
As it would be, Volunteer Park in Seattle has a lot in common with Central Park in New York City.
Volunteer Park, Seattle. I call this scene “Teddy Bear, Snowman, Noguchi.” February 2021.
At the turn of the 20th century, a young city of Seattle was growing at a fast clip, showing no signs of slowing down. Early Seattle leaders foresaw the need to conserve land for the purpose of then current as well as future generations to enjoy.
Consequently, the early leaders decided to create a parks system in Seattle. They hired notable landscape architects, the Olmsted Brothers, Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr., and John Charles Olmsted to develop the master plans for Seattle’s nascent parks system. The Olmsted Brothers inherited the nation's first landscape architecture firm headquartered in Brookline, Massachusetts from their father, the eminent landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, Sr. who designed Central Park in New York City.
From 1903-1936, the Olmsted Brothers had their hands either directly or indirectly involved in developing 83 of Seattle’s city parks that we enjoy to this day.
Built in 1901, Volunteer Park is one of the first parks in Seattle designed by the brothers and was designated landmark status in 2011.
Volunteer Park is described as "an urban park designed in the naturalistic, pastoral/picturesque American romantic style that is closely associated with the Olmsted firm. The elements of this style include irregular open lawns bordered by shrub and tree plantings, carefully framed and modulated views, one or more circulation loops, and areas intended for crowds and social interaction which are treated in a more geometric and formal manner. The Olmsted Brothers retained Olmsted, Sr.'s belief that people would receive psychological benefits from being surrounded by and contemplating natural scenery. This view was widely held during the late 19th and early 20th centuries and continues to have adherents. As a result, Olmsted-designed parks emphasize space for non-programmed, passive recreation and flexible activities. Volunteer Park’s open, interconnected lawns and bordering masses of trees express that design philosophy.” Source: Volunteer Park Landmark Nomination, 2011.
Here is another blog post about Capitol Hill that includes a few paintings I made that feature Volunteer Park.
I will be touring more Olmsted-designed Seattle parks in the upcoming weeks and months and sharing updates here.
Mary Lamery is a lifelong resident of Seattle, Washington, USA and native of the Pacific Northwest.
Lamery paints regional landscape in a manner that leans towards 19th century French Impressionism. Her landscapes invite the viewer to add to the backstory of the composition through personal identification with the paintings and story telling of the experience.
Follow Mary on Instagram.