John Wiley
Moving from Alaska to Seattle in 1985 to start my photography business in the Pike Place Market, I never would have thought I would still be here so many years later. Over the years I’ve seen a lot of changes, parts of downtown Seattle are almost unrecognizable. The viaduct is gone, South Lake Union is a massive tech center, and the skyline is constantly changing.
Covid brought even more change. In April of 2020 the Pike Place Market, for the first time in its history almost completely shut down. Hundreds of businesses including my own shut down. It was a challenging time for everyone, but with challenge comes opportunity. I was able to use the time to work with a talented designer to give a much needed refresh to my website. I started instagraming. I also used the time to explore Seattle, mostly by bike, finding many new perspectives, some of which you can see on my New Works page.
Of course there are constants as well, the reasons many of us choose to live here have not changed. Seattle is a vibrant city with a progressive and diverse culture. The Pike Place Market is still at our heart, truthfully even more during these hard times. We live on the salt water of the Salish Sea, with an amazing First Nations heritage. We are surrounded by the Cascade and Olympic mountain ranges, punctuated by Mt. Rainier to the south. We can leave our city in any direction and quickly find the solace of nature.
After all these years, I’m still happy and thankful to live in the great Pacific Northwest. I hope you see that reflected in my work. Thanks for looking.
John
photo: Teri Capp