Leschi Artist’s Map is the COVID Public Art Project You’ve Been Waiting For

Celebrating public space, Libby L. Gerber invites viewers to look for views of Mount Rainier in mundane public spaces, using her hand-drawn map as a guide.

Leschi artist, Libby L. Gerber, created a public art project mapping the views of Mount Rainier in the Leschi Elementary School attendance area (which includes Leschi and parts of the Central District neighborhoods) in public spaces. The public spaces represented include grand views like the breathtaking end-of-street overlook at 35th Ave. & E. Conover Ct. However, Gerber is most interested in ordinary, often overlooked places where Mount Rainier pops up. Some of the more mundane places marked on the map include the busy intersection of Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. and Dearborn, the city parking lot adjoining Leschi park and the intersection adjacent to the Central Area Senior Center.

Gerber has made the map available to the public to download from her website and use as a “treasure map” to find the views in the area. She invites viewers to capture the views on camera or in drawings and submit those drawings to be included. The project isn’t limited only to the neighborhoods represented in on the map. The map is just a starting place and an invitation to encourage the public to rediscover their neighborhoods.

She made the map by walking and biking all the streets in the area on the clear days when “The Mountain” was out. Once she had collected all the data of where the views were located, she created a bright-colored mixed-media map that includes the contour lines of the area and is marked with a small icons of each public place from which you can view Mount Rainier.

Libby L. Gerber is a Seattle-based artist who explores the intersections between urban life, the environment, and society. She exhibits her work in both traditional and unconventional public spaces as well as in formal galleries. She has shown work at the Center on Contemporary Art, Chaffey College, LAUNCH, The Audubon Center at Debs Park, The Milagro Allegro Community Garden, Gallery 825, Santa Ana College, The City of Brea Municipal Gallery, and the Angel’s Gate Cultural Center to name a few. She holds a Master of Fine Arts degree in Public Art and Sculpture from California State University, Northridge and a Bachelor of Arts in Art History and Visual Arts from Occidental College.

Contact: Libby L. Gerber, 206-245-8606, libby@libbygerber.com, www.libbygerber.com, Instagram: @libgerber @PublicViewsofMtRainier