Adding Art To Your Window Cleaning Business

Mitch Jacobsen of 'Better Window Cleaning Seattle' had this mural painted for him by Henry. Click to enlarge.

Work in progress, Henry draws the outline of the mural on the side of 'Better Window Cleaning Seattle.' Click to enlarge.

Neighborhood Gems: Artist Ryan Henry Ward, better known as Henry, has only been in Seattle for three years and already he has adorned the city with 116 murals. The first 26 of which he did for free. His most recent murals were painted last month on the Axis Automotive building on Russell Avenue N.W. in Ballard and on the Better Window Cleaning business in Fremont.

Born in Montana and raised in Enumclaw, Henry wanted to be a cartoonist growing up. "I spend years trying to find a unique style of cartooning," he said. His style of cartooning is now evident in the various characters he paints on walls -- Sasquatch, guitar-playing unicorns, walruses on tiny bicycles, etc.

Henry attended Fairhaven College at Western Washington University where graduated with a degree in children's literature. He worked as a social worker for a while but never stopped painting. "I have been painting since I was 16 and it was my hobby until I was 31," he said. At 31 he decided to pack his bags and pursue his passion for art. "As soon as my art got into a gallery, I moved here," he said.

Henry does murals all over any surface, any location.

That was February of 2008 when he was invited to show his art in the now closed Orange Splot Gallery in Fremont. Neighboring the gallery was a bar called the Triangle Lounge where Henry painted his first Seattle mural. The owner liked Henry's work and asked if he could cover up the graffiti on the side of his building. "That was my first muralist job in Seattle and it's been fun ever since," Henry said. The Triangle Lounge has since closed and the new owners painted over Henry's mural. His oldest remaining mural can be seen on NW 45th Street, which is a pitbull and unicorn playing guitar.

Through word of mouth, interest in Henry's murals grew quickly and soon his murals were popping up on businesses, garage doors, and even on some walls at Lowell Elementary School. All murals have one common goal: to entice imagination. "There's more to our world than grey walls and beat up buildings," Henry said. "Bright colors is what this particular environment needs. The only way things can change is through imagination. My paintings allow people to get back into imagination." See more of Henry's work here or click picture below.

Mitch Jacobsen says.. I'm one of the owner's here at Better Window Cleaning Seattle! We are a small company and run our business from this horrible looking building in a neighborhood that is alive with musicians, artists, and restaurants. So, we decided to brighten up the neighborhood a little with a themed mural by Henry. We wanted it to tie into what we do so, Henry came up with the idea to have an outdoor theme. As if to say, imagine the what you could be seeing with clean windows! The neighborhood loves it. We here comments from people passing by everyday. It has been a great move for our business and a colorful one for the neighborhood. We have had a lot of graffiti in the area and this has been a good solution. Especially because Henry removes graffiti from his murals for free!

In our efforts putting up the mural we pressure washed the parking lot and sidewalk around our building. This spurred more pressure washing from our neighbors. So, we also just donated a days worth of pressure washing at the Fremont Abbey Arts Center, our neighbors a couple doors down. The Abbey is a vibrant force in our neighborhood and needed some cleaning up before our neighborhood festival that they just hosted. It has been a busy month for our small business! We were also just featured in a NY Times article about the extra amount of moss that has been growing in the Pacific Northwest over the last few years. 

In addition to window cleaning we also clean gutters, pressure wash, and remove moss from roofs. It is fairly common for a window cleaning company around here to provide these services along with window cleaning. Since we don't have a lot of sun, we stay busy on the rainy days by putting our ladders to other uses. The NY Times came out with us on a moss removal job (here, full article here) to see how we have been helping people keep the moss on their roofs under control. In only a few years moss can eat away at a roof and cause costly water damage. Most people don't even know that it is up there! Our service stands out because it is a cheap and environmentally sound decision compared to a new roof and or water damage. We also provide before and after photos via email, so the client can see the work we have done and keep track of the problem without even getting on the roof!

As you can see it's been busy around here.  We are a small company that is owned by myself, Mitch Jacobsen (pictured) and my business partner Colin Ray. At the moment we only have two employees but, we are all great friends and believe in a quality product and a satisfied customer. We have been in business now for 5 years and continue to grow despite a tough economy. We owe much of our success to our great customers and their continued referrals. It also helps that we love what we do. We are blessed in the Pacific Northwest with picturesque views everywhere you turn. Mountains, water, flowers...  So there is a real need for clean windows. Our job is rewarding and unique because we get to help people rediscover their intimate view of this landscape. We also get to share it with them for a brief moment... How great is that? It is hard to not have a contagious smile when you get to see so much beauty on a daily basis!