Seattle scenes -- I

A drawbridge: On a functional level it carries a railroad across Salmon Bay and in its open position allows ships to pass to and from the locks. The balance of forms, massive understructure, huge rivets, and delicate-looking yet strong steel girders of the superstructure combine to form an aesthetic kinetic sculpture.; The purpose of these pilings was to support some long-gone structure. Now, as solitary posts, linked by sunlit water, they remain as a design that would probably please the eye of many a modern artist.; The anchor chains were strictly functional originally, their purpose being to hold a ship of a certain size in all kinds of weather. People have taken these steel chains to add a decorative maritime effect along the waterfront. The sun, in relationship to its position with the draped links, alters the pattern to a design with shadows which changes throughout the day and with the seasons.; The hoist, made to load and unload heavy objects, and left in a random position by its operators, forms a strong silhouette against the early evening sky and contrasts with the sunlit, painted fence, built for safety. The hoist, its work day over, frames the faraway yacht carrying people who have also finished their work for the day. The man fishing from the next pier is relaxing, unaware that his dark form complements the weathered fencing protecting him.; These pilings, pointed to shed rain and vividly reflected in the water, form a line parallel to the pier and lead the eye to the softly outlined peaks of the Olympic Mountains. The vertical masts and antennas of the boats repeat, although less obtrusively, the line inward to the same distant point. The sun, about to disappear from our hemisphere, has the last few seconds of the day to add its aesthetic effect on the human elements of functional design.