So I have to admit that I don't keep a sketchbook anymore. I did as an undergrad, and I frantically scribbled down evrything I saw that was compelling or any thought that popped into my head. The thing is, every time I write something down or sketch out an idea, I ususally forget about it. I just stopped keeping one and I seem to act on more of my ideas than I ever did when I was writing them down all the time. Someone once told me a story about when Corb met Einstein. Corb kept copius notebooks and assumed that Einstein did the same. He asked Einstein about it and Einstein responded that he did not keep any notebooks because if he had worthwhile thought he would remember it. Now, that story may be urban legend, but it rings true with me some days.
Now, I know this is near criminal in the minds of many architects, professors and students, but I don't think drawing is that important any more. To me, the mythology about drawing is a result of architects building a mythology around what they were going to have to do for the rest of their lives. That is, at some point in the recent past if you were an architect you spent most of your time putting pencil to paper: drafting. Those long hours at the drafting board had to have some meaning, so we built up a religion around drawing and its power to convince ourselves that what we do with our time is more that just "work". That is why so many architects react so poorly to "computer" drawings. They have been distanced from the means of production of buildings.
I am intentionally overstating the case to get some opinions. So tell me what you think. Do you keep a sketchbook? Why or why not? Do we need our own mythology around the computer to help us get through a career of staring at one?
5 Comments
hahaa... building up a mythology of CAD - that is a funny concept. i doubt it's possible. kind of a cliche, but of course the reason drawing is priveleged in our culture is because it is so much more of a direct translation between idea and representation than the computer. regardless of how adept someone is with computer programs, you can still convey ideas and sensibilities much quicker and easier with hand drawing than computer programs.
that said, i keep a sketch book but only for studio ideas. I almost never sketch other buildings, and only did freshman year when it was required. my drawing skills are underdeveloped, and unfortunately at this point, I am very reluctant to turn in anything by hand because I know I can represent it far more accurately and better on computer. I don't expect it to be too problematic in the professional environment, but I know there are certain situations - while conversing with clients, or co-workers, when it will be necessary to draw ideas out concurrently with design discussions.
and so the moral in my opinion is that drawing will never be irrelevant, and sketching around you is a way of establishing that habitual connection between thought and representation. basic skills in drawing, i think, remain essential.
I have a very peculiar sketch book.....i love to sketch on trace paper with those nifty but expensive ART-PENs, i like the texture and the quickness of trace paper. But im also a perfectionist when it comes to drawing and sketching ideas, after a night of sketching out ideas I go through the piles of trace paper and pick out the best scribbles and glue them into the pages of my black sketchbook. After doing this in the same book for about three years it looks……interesting
I have to admit that lately I find myself sketching right on the pages as I walk through the city. But not architectural ideas, more like interesting sculptures and people I come across throughout the day.
I keep sketch books - they are m best sources of information
I write in them as much as I draw - even paint in them
drawing is the best means for an architect to communicate his ideas why would you want to do something else
You will be buryng your head in the sand like those watercolor purist from the beaux arts academies did if you think that the computer is the only way to work.
Use all the tools at your disposal to communicate. No one builds a house with a hammer alone.
you may want to print this out and read:
http://www.archinect.com/forum/threads.php?id=14444_0_42_0_C
A wee bit cynical, this mythology of the Architect drawing, but true in many respects.
Drawing is visual thinking. (And I hope you soon-to-be Architects aren't wandering around drawing only canonical buildings. When I was studying abroad in Rome I would watch in dismay as the architecture students sat down with mechanical pencils and rulers to draw the Porta Pia etc etc.) To draw is to establish a very physical connection to the world. I teach a lot of non-architects and non-artists. I ask them to draw. The begin to see things that were never seen before.
Drawing yes, mythology no.
Block this user
Are you sure you want to block this user and hide all related comments throughout the site?
Archinect
This is your first comment on Archinect. Your comment will be visible once approved.