Postcards from the left coast

Last March I was in British Columbia, skiing at Whistler and a day in Vancouver.  It happened that the manager of the St. Clair noticed me sketching and a few months later asked permission to use the sketch as a postcard.  About the same time I was contacted by Dave, one of the owners of the Southside Diner in Whistler with a similar request.

And here they are.

The St. Clair

One of the fun things that happens now and then when I'm sketching is that someone asks me about what I'm doing.  This narrow hotel and neighbouring roof terrace caught my eye as I was hanging out with my skateboarding son in Vancouver.

Blake, the Hotel manager noticed my suspicious activity and came over to investigate.  Turns out, he is an artist and was pleased to see me taking a few minutes to sketch the Hotel.  He gave me a little background on the building which piqued my interest enough to look it up.  It was built by a famous sea captain and was the first concrete building in Vancouver, built in 1911.  Captain Pybus and his Canadian Pacific Steamship, the Empress of Japan, are remembered for winning the Blue Ribbon for setting the trans-Pacific crossing record in 1897.

Today St. Clair is rebranding itself as a hostel, offering affordable accommodation to travelers.