TRAVEL | 4 DAYS OF ARCHITECTURE IN SEATTLE, WASHINGTON

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Seattle, Washington – A large city renowned for its exceptional culinary establishments, dynamic urban landscapes, and distinctive architecture. The city seamlessly blends natural beauty within the sophisticated urban infrastructure. If you decide to travel to Seattle and curious to unravel the narratives behind structures, urban evolution, and scenic vistas – Below are some great architecture, landscapes and city culture spot to to check out on your initial visit. I also wanted to share a designer’s lense to show you what makes these structures and environment so great to walk through.

DAY 1

SITE VISIT 1: SEATTLE SKYLINE TOURS (MORNING)
Designer’s Perspective – For first timers, going on a skyline tour is a great way to get yourself introduced to the city as well as view the Seattle skyline. Be prepared with either your jacket, sun glasses, or hats because it may either be sunny or cold. 

SITE VISIT 2: PIKE PLACE MARKET (AFTERNOON)
ADDRESS: 85 Pike Street, Seattle, WA 98101
Designer’s Perspective – Pikes place is a very vibrant area to grab food, purchase souvenirs, or buy produce. The area is well known for it’s gum wall and show for fish catching. In the back area, you get a beautiful view of the water, as well as a nice outdoor area. When you navigate in the front, you will be near the main action of the market. Though, considering that this area welcomes many locals and tourist, the stoned path would’ve been better if there was no vehicular entry, except for needed loading for restaurants or markets? 

SEATTLE SPACE NEEDLE
ADDRESS: 400 Broad St, Seattle, WA 98109
ARCHITECT(s): John Graham, Jr, Victor Steinbrueck
Designer’s Perspective –  They will run through your portfolio, and sometimes not every piece of work you’ve done. Just reflect on your portfolio, and which one you’re most confident in presenting. Also, when you have that one project that connects to that firm’s specialty area. For example, if you’ve worked on residential or masterplan projects make sure that you have that one project you are confident presenting.

DAY 2

     SITE VISIT: SEATTLE PUBLIC LIBRARY
ADDRESS: 1000 4th Ave, Seattle, WA 98104
Designer’s Perspective 
The library has an impressive skin and scale throughout the building. Since the library is large in scale, there was a really good use of circulation throughout the building. The glass facade did not have window openings, shielding the building from cold winter weather, 
There was a clever use of color within the library despite the complex facade. One example are the escalators. The yellow was a clear indicator of the escalator’s location, and at some moments the walls between blocked off and created the focus on the yellow color. 

 

DAY 3

     COMMUTE: RENTAL CAR (WHOLE DAY)
TIPS: If you are doing a rental car service make sure it is from a reliable source. Also for your safety, it will be a peace of mind if you have a buddy to be with you especially when you do actions such as picking up the key, going around the city, and dropping off the key.

SITE VISIT: KERRY PARK (MORNING)
ADDRESS: 211 W Highland Dr, Seattle, WA 98119
You way the skyline view of Seattle on coffee bean bags, this is a great way to see a mountain view of the city. The drive way up may be questionable as it is surrounded by residents nearby. Though, once you get towards the look out, you get a beautiful view of Seattle’s skyline. 

      SITE VISIT: GASWORKS PARK (AFTERNOON)
ADDRESS: 2101 N Northlake Way, Seattle, WA 98103
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT: Richard Haag

Experience in Perspective
Learning from my landscape class – the park was transformed as it was previously sat on polluted soils and water. Today, the park has transformed to recover from the environmental damages, and is an ideal place for recreation. The park will take you through meandering walkways that navigate you around the park. There are moments in the park when you step back and see the contrast of the past as you see the gasification plant right in front, while the present of the housing sits in the back. The architect of the park really transformed the area to preserving and integrated the place’s history. 

SITE VISIT: UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON – SUZAALLO LIBRARY (EVENING)
ADDRESS: 4000 15th Ave NE, Seattle, WA, 98195
ARCHITECT(S): Carl Gould,Sr & Charles H.Bebb

Experience in Perspective
First of all, the university is huge – so if you’re taking your rental car make sure you plan for parking ahead of time. The exterior of the library pays a lot attention to details on almost each building component from the columns, glass, walls, windows, railings, and even the book shelves. The style overall reflects gothic architecture, an architectural movement, in comparison similar to what you see in European churches. 

 

DAY 4

SITE VISIT: MUSEUM OF POP CULTURE (AFTERNOON) 
ADDRESS: 325 5th Ave N, Seattle, WA, 98109
ARCHITECT: Frank Gehry
Experience  in Perspective
The Museum of Pop is designed by Frank Gehry, who’s most famous buildings include Walt Disney Concert Hall (Los Angles,California), Guggenheim Museum (Bilbao, Spain), and 8 Spruce Tower (N.Y, New York). He broke through boundaries in architecture with his abstract designs. Though, from learning from the museum’s architecture information, the building is not meant to be waterproof. As you notice from the main exterior material, seen in many of his buildings, are metal shingles covered with a beaded glass finish. This exterior is more so of a ”shell”, instead of a typical wall. The Museum of POP stated on a sign that the skin is made of more than 21,000 shingles. 

Navigation:
As a first timer, one of the best ways to enter the museum is going through it – literally. There will be a monorail that runs from downtown Seattle to the Museum of Pop, and will take less than 5 minutes to arrive. The Museum of Pop makes an opening for the transportation, and you eventually will see the Space needle near by. As you navigate, there can be moments within the exterior when you just have a lot of questions to yourself like ”why did he add a funky looking door on the side?” ”why did he add a piece of glass when it doesn’t seem like it’s used as a shading device?”, etc. The unusual shape makes you feel more curious of the building that you start to make your way around it, just as an art piece. 

Materials:
Frank Gehry really used his artistic intent to really form the structure the way that he wanted, as the panels vary in size and shape. The choice of material also stands out as the metal panels differ from an rustic orange, gray, red, magenta, and light blue colors. He also added touches of translucent glass, which seems to give the intent to make the structure standout more, than having a large lit up sign to show the entry.

      SITE VISIT: OLYMPIC SCULPTURE PARK (EVENING)
ADDRESS: 2901 Western Ave, Seattle, WA 98121
Architects: Weiss Manifredi

Architectural Experience
The park is a great place for locals and new comers to gather. It is a easy commute when you walk from the famous Seattle Space Needle, but you have to be cautious of the hill going down towards the park – they can be steep going down and up. The park is beautiful at anytime of the day, though it is truly a plus when you sit and watch the sunset. 

Navigation:
You are first greeted by a concrete entry, and it later opens up to the park’s greenery. A long path forces the user to keep going straight through the park, similar to an art exhibition. The park is filled with fantastically scaled pieces and cleverly places the art pieces to stop the user to mesmerize the pieces as well as letting us appreciate the view of both the city and the ocean. A common area where users would stop is the red sculpture, as known as ”the eagle”. 

Integration:
The park is an excellent way to integrate a pedestrian path over the train tracks and roadways. This easily gives a peace of mind to all users who walk through the park without worrying about any vehicular interruption. Stadium park does not only stop within one area – this branches towards Centennial Park and the ferry harbor area – a very nice pedestrian friendly area.

Hi! I'm Vheonix

The intent for this blog is to guide, inspire, & achieve as aspiring designers. I am an introverted individual in a field that involves social & interpersonal skills. Though, I want you to gain the confidence you need to succeed as a designer. 

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