This weekend, Seattle Times' Pacific Northwest Magazine profiled Stephen Glassman's Thornton Creek, a 28-foot-tall free-standing sculpture at Fire Station 39 in Lake City.

This weekend, Seattle Times’ Pacific Northwest Magazine profiled Stephen Glassman’s Thornton Creek, a 28-foot-tall free-standing sculpture at Fire Station 39 in Lake City. The piece examines the inspiration behind the sculpture and its relationship to the Miller Hull Partnership-designed fire station. 

Dedicated earlier this year, Thornton Creek serves as both a sculptural element and a functioning conveyance system for rainwater. The artwork is integrated visually and functionally with the building and serves as a rainwater delivery system moving runoff from the station’s roof to an underground cistern. The sculpture includes two raised planting beds that feature and support native Northwest grasses.

The artwork was commissioned with Seattle’s Department of Finance and Administrative Service’s Fire Facilities and Emergency Response Levy 1% for Art funds and administered by the Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs.