Southwest Branch, The Seattle Public Library, Seattle, Washington

After the visit to the Central Branch of the Seattle Public Library system, I figured I should drop in on a nearby branch as well since the drive in had been such a drag and I was already thinking I might stay close to Lakewood for the remainder of my stay. After a little research in the car, I punched in the destination to the Southwest Branch and Google Maps led the way.

One of the delightful things about Seattle is the fact that you are always crossing bridges, some small, some mighty, but all by necessity of the surrounding land laid out over bays and lakes and rivers. Sometimes it costs you a $6 dunce fare, most the time it costs you nothing...and then sometimes Google Map Woman tries to murder you into a body of water because she's Skynet and you know how those driods are. Never to be trusted, y'all.

On my way back from the Southwest Branch to Lakewood, she chose the fastest route, which she is supposed to do by design, but in Seattle that includes riding ferries which was, for reasons I cannot express adequately, completely out of the question. Maybe it's because I've only been on a ferry once, maybe I've seen The Ring too many times...or maybe it was because I just watched that Law & Order episode ripped from the headlines where the ferry smashes into the dock. Maybe I just couldn't stomach taking my precious Rogue on there. Who the F knows. What I do know is that when she first told me to turn left, I literally thought I was having a Michael Scott moment where this crazy bitch was trying to drown me in the bay. But it was just the ferry entrance.

I don't know, it seems wildly exotic to me that people take the ferry with their cars on the regular. I was used to the idea of ferrying people via NYC, but the whole dang car? It seems like a thing only royalty would get away with, you know? Fancy water people.

Anyway, my trip from downtown to the Southwest Branch Library was uneventful (save fun jaunts over high bridges wheeee) and there was even a twee little parking lot. I didn't have my laptop and only intended on taking photos, but ended up speaking with one of the library staff for half an hour.

The library itself is very new, with lots of the modern perks I've seen in other recently built libraries. There was space set out specifically for children and for teens, lots of computers for patrons to use, and plenty of spaces for free study, perusing books, and so on. The aesthetics were vibrant and colorful, and it would have been a great place to spend some real time.

What I loved the most, however, were the art displays all over the library. I am sharing a few of my favorites here, but they are only a fraction of what the Southwest Branch had to offer. This was what I wanted to talk to someone about--what was it for? School related (seemed unlikely)? Some community event?

I wish I could remember the name of the nice man who talked to me about the art, the library, and my trip, but try as I have, I cannot. He kind of looked like College Steve Jobs, so we'll call him Steve.

Steve was interested to hear of my travels, and my thoughts on the central library downtown, but he was equally interested in telling me all about the art exhibited around the library. First, this is the only branch in the Seattle Public Library System that has a program like this. Every year, they ask for submissions from local artists--there is no age restriction; the only real rule is that the artist should be truly local, e.g. from the southwest part of Seattle. He said artists from all over the region expressed interest in showing at the Southwest Branch, but they really tried to keep it to local locals regardless. I told him they should suggest the other branches get in on the action and he said it's come up before, but at this time Southwest stands alone.

Axl Haka, "Cat Skellington" and "Oogie Kitty" (clay and wire)

What I loved about the art--and the idea behind it--was the fact that the patrons would have a consistently changing series of exhibits every year, with art to enjoy until the new set was ready to be installed. It was fun to peruse the aisles to see just what weird and wonderful thing might be around the corner. It also gives these artists free exposure for their work. I would be giddy to have my work displayed at the local library--can you imagine? I feel like every library everywhere should do this!

My favorite piece of all was titled "Imp" by Amanda Musclerat (Plywood Collage)--it was right near the teen section, my first tip off that this probably wasn't a school project. My sister will have to inform us if Satan (or images even vaguely in his image) are allowed in high school art classes these days, but I do recall some level of censorship back in my teen days.

I kind of love that "Imp" lives near the teen section, frolicking no less, as though to say ha ha try to censor me [devil horns, tongue out, frolic frolic]. It reminds me of that story about the Satanists whose direct action against the placement of the ten commandments in an Oklahoma state building was to propose equality for all religions by inclusion a muscular, shiny Baphomet statue. I nearly have a coronary laughing every time I think of it...so shiny, so muscle-y. Imagine all the lemon faces, slamming those bibles shut and stalking out the door. Freedom of religion, baby.

And at the Southwest Branch, there's freedom of expression, too.

There were other interesting offerings, such as matchstick cars (real matchsticks!) and an assemblage commemorating 9/11. That one in particular struck me because it is personal, but also because it reminded me of the whole time period around the event. "No one could have anticipated airplanes as missiles" the quote says, an amalgam of many different quotes from the CIA and Condoleezza Rice, all of which summed up my biggest problem with it: that aforementioned hurdle I could never get over. Being a person who would glue myself to the tv whenever one plane would crash--because it was too awful, because it gave me night sweats, because I obsessed about the very possibility of it--did not put me in the best place to wrap my mind around an event like 9/11. So when it happened, I shut down emotionally. My brain accepted that the event occurred--on paper, on the record--and cut all ties with my emotional core. It put up a hand and said quietly: No.

Dave Fitton, "North woods" (Assemblage)

So this piece, boxed in, saying the thing that was at the core of the horror for me personally, all with that patriotism-baiting flag in the background (further reminding me of stupid conversations that took place when we started invading Iraq and all the other manipulative, highly immoral rhetoric to keep us hurtling like wounded, blindly furious missiles ourselves, pointed straight at anything brown and "evildoing") was as moving as it was disconcerting. I suppose that's art doing its job, right? Pulling feelings out of people? Ruuude.

It was great to talk to Steve and spend a little time admiring the Southwest Branch library. I headed back to the Air BNB (with a quickly averted murder at the bay, nice try Google Map Woman) to relax and scroll through the past few days' photographic treasures.