4Culture and Metro are excited to announce the selection of not one but two artist teams who will help advance the future of regional public transit at the forthcoming South Annex Base in Tukwila and an expanded bus stop at Third Avenue South and South Main Street in historic Pioneer Square.

South Annex Base: Haddad|Drugan

Mobility is a human right and Metro is committed to getting people where they need to go—safely, equitably, and sustainably. As part of their transition to a 100% zero-emissions fleet powered by renewable energy, they are expanding capacity at their South Campus to house, operate, and maintain approximately 250 new battery electric buses. After construction, South Annex Base (SAB) will function as a stand-alone bus base. The artist team of Haddad|Drugan (Laura Haddad and Tom Drugan) has just been selected to join the SAB design team and will help influence the overall look and feel of the facilities, develop their own site-specific or architecturally integrated artwork, and recommend and support opportunities for two other artists/teams to lend creative thinking to the project.

Haddad|Drugan’s Seattle-based studio focuses on the creation of large-scale, conceptually driven art and multi-sensory aesthetic experiences that explore qualities of light, color, magic and wonder to reveal cultural and environmental conditions. Their partnership began in 2001 and they have since produced a wide range of innovative public art commissions and plans. Locally, they have worked as design team artists for the Elliott Bay Seawall, Climate Pledge Arena, and Sound Transit’s Angle Lake Station.

“For Metro’s South Annex Base, we will draw inspiration from the facility and surrounding environment to develop artworks that both represent and inspire our diverse King County community and the staff who will be using the facilities daily. We envision artworks integrated into a variety of sites, some more iconic from distant views and others more nuanced and experiential. We are excited about the potential for art to weave together stories about innovative sustainable practices, including electrification of the buses and restoration of Riverton Creek, to create a strong sense of place while also inspiring awareness about how the energy of transit can empower the community.”
– Laura Haddad & Tom Drugan

Third Avenue South and South Main Street: Preston Singletary and David Franklin

The Third Avenue Transit Corridor is used by tens of thousands of people each day and provides connections for bus riders who are traveling to and from sites throughout the county. A quarter of the buses that operate in the corridor pick up passengers at Third Avenue South and South Main Street in Pioneer Square. With more than 2,650 average daily riders and 24 different routes served, it has become Metro’s 10th busiest stop.

To create a safer, more accessible, and more reliable experience for people catching the bus at this heavily trafficked location, Metro and the City of Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) are repairing and reconfiguring the streetscape and installing new amenities, including a signature sculpture by artists Preston Singletary and David Franklin.

Singletary lives and works in Seattle. He started blowing glass at Glass Eye Studio in 1982, developed skills as a production glass maker, and attended the Pilchuck Glass School. At the studio of Benjamin Moore, Singletary broadened his knowledge and understanding of the medium by assisting Dante Marioni, Richard Royal, Dan Dailey and Lino Tagliapietra. During this time, he also started to develop his own unique visual style.

Singletary’s practice has since become synonymous with the relationship between Tlingit culture and fine art. His sculptures merge themes from Tlingit mythology and traditional design, and he is recognized internationally for his use of glass as well as other non-traditional materials to bring new dimension to contemporary Indigenous art.

David Franklin developed a profound appreciation for the traditional art forms and histories of the Pacific Northwest when he moved here in his early 20s. Following an extensive apprenticeship with Duane Pasco, he began creating his own large-scale artworks. This experience eventually led him to initiate a collaborative public art practice with Singletary. The partnership leverages Franklin’s expertise in fabrication, project management and community engagement to support Singletary’s creative vision.

“I am honored to be selected, with David Franklin, to create a site-specific sculpture for the Pioneer Square area. I’m a lifelong resident of Seattle and I look forward to working with the community. ”
–Preston Singletary

“I am honored and excited to work with Preston Singletary on this project in the cultural heart of Seattle. We are looking forward to creating a sculpture that speaks both to the past and the future and is free for everyone to enjoy and experience.”
–David Franklin