Gouache Adventure: Plein Air Painting at the Fremont Ship Canal

It was an absolutely beautiful sunny day and my friend Kyle Wendt and I wanted to do some gouache plein air painting. I suggested we go somewhere near some water. After I picked him up in my car, we decided to head down to the ship canal in Fremont. There is a wonderful stretch of the canal that runs through Fremont, called the Fremont Cut, with parks and walking paths running along both sides, and grassy slopes that go right down to the water’s edge. There is near-constant boat traffic and it’s a great place to hang out and enjoy the boat parade.

This section of canal is called the Fremont Cut and is part of the larger Lake Washington Ship Canal that connects Lake Washington to the Puget Sound. The canal project was begun in 1911 and officially completed in 1934. The Fremont Cut section, which connects Lake Union on the east to Salmon Bay to the west, was actually begun in 1883 with the digging of Ross Creek, and finished in 1917 with the completion of the Ballard Locks, just downstream from the Ballard neighborhood.

Kyle and I found a metal platform right at the water’s edge that no one else was using at the moment, so we set up our painting supplies and spent the next couple hours there. A few people came by here and there, but for the most part we had the platform to ourselves.

It was a beautiful sunny afternoon and it was wonderful painting and watching the slow parade of boats going by.

After a while we packed up and went to the south side of the canal just past the Ballard Locks and sat on the grass and did some more sketching. There is a train bridge there and we both did some sketching.

Eventually I dropped Kyle off and home and I headed back to my neighborhood, Capitol Hill, where PrideFest was happening. Broadway was closed off to cars and was lined with booths and a gagilion people. I love the PrideFest and it’s a great place for people-watching.

My wife and I wandered through the crowds a bit, then got some take-out and and had a nice evening at home.

Materials:

Pentalic Aqua Journal: https://amzn.to/46z9o3Y

Tripod: https://amzn.to/43olWZz

Portable collapsable watercolor brush holder and wash cup: https://amzn.to/46vfbaY

Daniel Smith ExtraFine Gouache:
Titanium White
Hanza Yellow Light
Pyrrol Red
Cobalt Blue
Burnt Umber
Ivory Black
I buy my gouache paints from Blick Art Supplies http://dickblick.com