KPLU Local News
(2010-08-22)
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Photo by Camille Dohrn
A street performer uses a hula hoop in his act, along with a variety of props, as he performs in Pike Place Market.
They are Street Artists, or buskers, an English term from the 1800s. They are content to be on what some consider the bottom rung of the entertainment ladder. A 17 year old kid packs around five gallon plastic paint cans, a couple of cowbells, and a pair of drumsticks. He sets up in front of Nordstrom with a cardboard sign that reads "College Fund". His name is Zach Karp. After four hours he may walk away with more than $200 offered one by one from passerbys.
| Photos by Camille Dohrn |
A tall lean twenty something with a 50's style close crop hair cut and pale blue eyes will defy gravity by spinning a book the size of the "Iliad" on one hand, solving a rubrics cube with the other while he keeps a few hula hoops going and offers a comedic narration .
An elderly Chinese man sitting Indian style up against a building tells in broken English, he not only plays a 2 string primitive homemade violin, but sells his own paintings as well. He has a pleasant contented demeanor.
Some have worked the sidewalks for years. Others are just beginning. They are always out on nice days. Not so much on cold rainy or windy days. People are less prone to stop and linger. Some are too busy texting or checking e mail on a Blackberry to take the time to slow down for a moment of this throwback to the days of the Pied Piper of Hamelin ... of the wandering minstrels ... the troubadours and snake oil salesmen who ply their craft for, and make their living from strangers. Street Artists.
