With the shelves stocked inside the new QFC on 24th Ave NW, final touches are being put on the outside.
We met up with Seattle artists Anna Sher of Boulevard Park and Rodman Gilder Miller of Fremont who, for the last year, have been designing and creating the art for the outside of the building. “We talked to the architect and they gave us an idea of what they were looking for,” Sher tells us, “They were talking about Danish design or Scandinavian design.”
With Sher’s metal work and Miller’s glass work, they created this 80-foot railing. “I was told ‘do something with the water,’” Miller tells us, so he created a glass rain catchment that will be installed in the middle of the railing. “I’m happy with it,” Anna says, “When you build it piece by piece, it’s really hard to get a sense of what its overall impact is going to be.”
Photo of artists Ten Ridlon, Anna Sher and Rodman Gilder Miller
Security Properties, the developer, has been very generous with their art budget, the two tell us, but they’ve been generous in other ways, too. “I feel like they’ve been generous to give the artists license to do what they want to do without a lot of constrictions,” Sher smiles. Along with this railing, the two are also creating a 24 foot by 15 foot screen with, great big leaves, flowers and glass for the south side of the building.
The two artists have worked together in the past on projects in Fremont and San Francisco. On the building in Fremont (shown above) Anna created the railings outside of Peet’s Coffee and Miller, along with metal artist Mark Stevens created other art on the building.
35 reader comments so far ↓
1 wendy // Jan 8, 2010 at 6:53 pm
Pretty! We are planning for a metal gate at driveway and this is great inspiration!
2 gumba // Jan 8, 2010 at 6:58 pm
Nice to see a developer willing to invest in art. Kudos also to Trammell Crow Residential for the open space and art next to Leva at 17th and 54th.
3 girl25 // Jan 8, 2010 at 7:01 pm
when does the qfc open???
4 Zobmie // Jan 8, 2010 at 7:09 pm
I'm glad they're putting some kind of art in there, but I really dislike their choice. I hated the stuff they did in Fremont and this isn't any better.
5 fiddler crab // Jan 8, 2010 at 7:14 pm
this is a bit better than the fremont building.
although the design pattern looks very similar for that project.
did that developer also request a “Danish” or “Scandanavian” design?
6 SwedishG // Jan 8, 2010 at 7:14 pm
Great news! One step against Ballard's boring beige!!!! Keep it coming.
7 Herder // Jan 8, 2010 at 7:17 pm
Very very nice!
8 NoraBell // Jan 8, 2010 at 7:31 pm
That building in Fremont gives me a facial twitch, but the QFC artwork is neat and interesting. Good job! :-)
9 Dusty // Jan 8, 2010 at 7:47 pm
Looking good! I am not a big fan of the Fremont work listed, but this looks ok so far.
Who else will be camping in line the night before the grand opening? (whenever that may be)
10 fiddler crab // Jan 8, 2010 at 7:52 pm
Who else will be camping in line the night before the grand opening? (whenever that may be)
maybe the 1,500 or so homeless people in ballard?
11 wear_a_shirt // Jan 8, 2010 at 8:26 pm
Now shopping cart lady will have another place to get carts….Actually I am excited for this place to open.
12 sparky107 // Jan 8, 2010 at 8:29 pm
Pretty! It looks like the railing around the Cafe Fiore at 85th and 32nd.
And this morning they were putting the chrome/glass on the portico.
Makes it look less like a mistake or an “oops! the ceiling fell in”.
13 gurple // Jan 8, 2010 at 8:52 pm
The second I saw that first photo above, I thought 'Fremont'. I like this railing as a standalone piece, but it does make me feel like it's been done before, and close by.
I haven't decided if I think that's a good thing or a bad thing yet.
14 Mallard // Jan 8, 2010 at 9:03 pm
The railings are not bad – that awning, though, is TERRIBLE. It looks like it's caving in on itself.
15 blite // Jan 8, 2010 at 10:10 pm
Wendy, we ordered custom metal gates at Home & Garden Art on 85th St. (just east of 15th Ave.) We are so pleased with how they turned out. If you haven't already picked out what you want, I suggest you talk to James there about what he can build for you.
16 TK // Jan 8, 2010 at 10:27 pm
aiming for Jan 16th to open I believe
17 Name // Jan 8, 2010 at 10:38 pm
For a while I did a double-take every time went by because it looks like it's collapsing. I wonder though, if they are going to cover it, if there's going to be a huge waterfall where the lower edges meet whenever it rains.
18 ethel // Jan 8, 2010 at 11:06 pm
Wait until the first time it has snow on it, and half the neighborhood thinks it caved in, never having noticed the slant before …
19 nwkitty // Jan 8, 2010 at 11:44 pm
It says she did the railings outside of Peet's. Peet's is the coral colored building in front of the monster. So I don't think she worked on the other hideous building but I could be wrong.
20 jody // Jan 8, 2010 at 11:46 pm
It looks very watery and kelpy – perfect for Ballard! I like it!
21 BallardBiker // Jan 9, 2010 at 12:02 am
Feb. 14th is the date of the grand opening
22 sdrake1958 // Jan 9, 2010 at 12:36 am
It has a really nice beat and I can dance to it. I'd give it a 9. Home Depot had a nice sale on railings here not too long ago too!
23 kim // Jan 9, 2010 at 1:01 am
i hope the vandals can hold off for at least a week. open, open, open….
24 trodemaster // Jan 9, 2010 at 3:40 am
Ok the railings are nice but that ugly big stuff on the outside of the fremont building is #2 on the crap list of fremont “public” art. Just because it's big and metal doesn't make it worthwhile.
I do applaud the effort tho..
25 connieflateboe // Jan 9, 2010 at 3:50 am
Who is going to pay for all the busted-up pavement around the site?
The streets have been PULVERIZED by the heavy equipment that put up this bland and boring cement pile.
26 Mallard // Jan 9, 2010 at 4:28 am
My guess is there has to be some sort of internal downspout built in but I haven't walked over there to take a close enough look. Still though – a strange design, and by the size of the beams holding it up, looks like a very inefficient one too.
27 Ernie_98107 // Jan 9, 2010 at 4:37 am
So funny! Mrs Ernie pointed over there when we were at Java Bean a few weeks ago and exclaimed ” they f'd up that beam!” I looked and said ” yeah, looks like they dropped it on that dumpster…. “
little did we know that was how it is supposed to be.
28 ballardpilot // Jan 9, 2010 at 4:49 am
“With the shelves stocked inside the new QFC on 24th Ave NW, final touches are being put on the outside.”
Oh, I don't think those are the “final touches.”
The final touches will be the tags that will appear soon enough. I hope they have a plan to deal with that constantly.
29 schlatty // Jan 9, 2010 at 7:39 am
From what I've heard, plans are for the QFC to open this coming Wednesday, 1/13.
Regarding the art, I appreciate having something designed, even if the metalwork railings look a little 'been there, done that' for Seattle. I actually think the wooden beam awning is terrific – It's modern, unexpected, and has more distinct nautical/Scandinavian design references than any other aspect of the building. I think it nicely echoes some of the same boat-inspired touches found in the Ballard Library.
I'd love to see a movement in Ballard to infuse major building projects in the future with a mission to incorporate some level of Scandinavian design and/or historical Ballard architectural motifs.
30 SPG // Jan 9, 2010 at 5:05 pm
I think it's a little premature to judge this installation. The work they did in Fremont on the railing around Peet's Coffee is quite nice, but I'm less a fan of the building that they started with in that case. Without the giant metal vines on the side of that building it would be a massive imposing box. Their sculpture on the side of the building does exactly what it was supposed to…soften the impact and try to blend an otherwise imposing box into a more eclectic neighborhood.
31 loyalheightsmafia // Jan 9, 2010 at 11:07 pm
“They were talking about Danish design or Scandinavian design.”
Funny, I thought Denmark was part of Scandinavia?
32 ballarddad // Jan 10, 2010 at 12:39 am
I heard January 13th.
33 ballarddad // Jan 10, 2010 at 12:41 am
I heard it was January 13th from the store manager. They were already stocking their shelves on the 4th of this month.
34 railings // Jan 12, 2010 at 4:38 pm
Those are some really cool railings
35 lwaioli // Jan 30, 2010 at 7:44 pm
Very interesting to read and learn about. Perhaps the QFC store could post a copy of this article so people who shop there can learn about this fantastic public art piece.
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