Name/Title
Print, PhotographicEntry/Object ID
1914Description
A Dee Molenaar sketch of the Spanaway Ice and Rock Education climbing facility at Sprinker Recreation Center. Molenaar was part of the volunteer effort that helped build SPIRE Rock. Molenaar’s artwork has appeared in books and art shows around the world, but he is also an accomplished climber. In addition to climbing America’s most challenging peaks, he’s climbed in the Alps and Himalayas. He took part in expeditions to Alaska’ Mount St. Elias in 1946 and he was part of the ill-fated 1953 American expedition to K2 in the Karakoram Himalaya. During the K2 trip, he painted several images at about 25,000 feet while waiting out a 10-day storm. The work is famous for being painted at a higher elevation than any other at the time. "I propped myself up on my elbows,” Molenaar told The News Tribune in 2005. “The tents we had weren't so big, you hardly had any headroom. The material was hanging down, and the wind was making it flap in my face." He melted snow so he had water for his paints and he painted some of the images from memory because the blizzard blocked his view of the world’s second-highest peak. "There were times when I had ice on my brush,” he said, “it was so cold up there."Lexicon
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Mountaineering, Mountain Climbing, Rock Climbing, Professional/Semi-Pro, RecreationalRelationships
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Person or Organization
Molinar, DeePerson or Organization
SPIRE RockPerson or Organization
SPIRE Rock