freehand sketching

As part of my "learn to draw" campaign, I took advantage of the much appreciated Inter Library Loan program and pulled down as many books as I could muster on the art of drawing, preferably for Architects. Freehand Sketching: An Introduction, by Paul Laseau has been a real pleasure.

I'm hoping to own this book soon, as I've decided to take it slow, and actually focus on absorbing each lesson. Paul writes in such an accessible tone that I find myself calling him Paul, as you may note in the annotations to some of the sketches - if you can read my scribbles!

From the introduction: "Freehand sketching provides an important tool for investigating and understanding existing and potential solutions to problems of our physical environment, such as lack of viable public social space or disorganized pedestrian and vehicular movement." ... "The immediacy and informality of freehand sketching supports a relaxed and fluid conversation..."

The book really got me thinking about things that school tried to teach me, or failed to teach me, or that I need to teach myself. It resonated for me along the lines of my inquiries into what it takes - or what I can do - to become a talented designer. A particular point of Laseau's that I appreciated has to do with the reasons for sketching, and the mentality which can better help you determine what "success" might mean - spoiler: it's not necessarily "to produce admirable drawings that provide a sense of accomplishment." Though that would be appreciated, the real purpose is to immerse yourself in a joyful, and advancing, process.

In Chapter One, Basic Skills, we explore the process of contour drawing. The first assignment is to draw your hand, so here are my daily efforts over the course of a week. It was incredibly convincing to begin developing technique - and noting improvement - over such a short time, and that's why you'll continue to see a weekly study series until the library demands this book be returned!

"More time should be spend watching the subject than checking the emerging drawing. Remember that it is the process, not the result, that counts." - Paul Laseau.

November = practice, practice, practice

I often sketch in my notebooks, but as the result of many things I've read, heard and thought lately, I decided to make a particular effort to draw on a daily basis. The goal is to improve - perhaps I'll eventually draw more quickly or more beautifully, but always the point is to capture the ESSENCE of whatever I was observing. 

sometimes I drew from thinking, other times from inspirational sources like Arch Daily and still more often from what was right in front of me. It was a little depressing to draw from the random Vogue magazine I inexplicably received, for philosophical reasons perhaps not worth exploring... once I got into drawing from my National Geographic's, however, it felt more my speed. That actually gained quite a bit of momentum, so we'll see more of the series in a future post.

I was so pleased with the increased energy level and creativity I associated with all this extra drawing, that I incorporated it into my daily "diary" pages that help me keep track of appointments and commitments, and are kept open on my desk most of the day.

Then I was so pleased with that result, that I revamped the template to encourage even more drawing and daily reflection on quality design, images and objects:
























What's your sketching habit? 

further design sketches

I've continued to sketch possible bench configurations that encourage social space for resting and visiting... I'd also like them to be 'useful' and meet the typical needs associated with public furniture, so I've begun to incorporate lighting, bicycle storage and planting containers...

further studies have been interrupted by other exciting projects, to be chronicled soon! 

Some addictions are good, right?

The internet is often a lost cause for me, a black hole, with little to offer. But as a reading-addict (some addicitions are good, right?)

just a few books borrowed from the library... that's not all of them... 

books alone are not enough. I must consume the written word and the image / object approximately 24 / 7... And this week, somehow, I hit the jackpot! LOTS of great writing out there to enjoy:

An incredible vote for humility and effectivity as opposed to stardom. 

Inspiring portraits of folks and their projects when rethinking potential blighting properties or spaces becomes a community necessity.

I get to listen to Rick all the time. And yet this is the kind of writing that reminds you not only why you love architecture, but why you love your job of architecting, with great people, in a beautiful region. 

I normally don't enjoy the bitterness, cynicism or outright profession-deprecating sarcasm of Coffee With an Architect. I do think Jody makes some great points, but I wish - naively - that they didn't have to be made, let alone in such a negative way. Recently, however, the tone of the writing has changed and I deeply enjoyed reading.

Very thoughtful observations on a stage we are... almost... reaching ourselves. Though my canned - and cannily accurate - response is still that we don't own a home because if we did, I'd have to start knocking down walls, and there are other things more important to my time right now ;) 

I didn't meet this guy, but the guy who met him. I was at an Arts Council opening and met a gentleman who was walking from Rhode Island to the Great Lakes. Yes, I wrote Walking. Not to mention that, the gentleman had just that day met a younger traveler, headed in the opposite direction. Who'd started out in California, headed up to Washington and then gone across the country. On foot. The blog of this younger man was recommended to me, and when I finally logged on, I was completely in love.

 

And with simple and pure joy, I found this, which reminded me of the time I accidentally broke into Peter Zumthor's Studio Office while traveling alone in Chur... 

 

Look here for one of the many ways I immersed myself in his work - and the wonder of Switzerland - during that week back in the summer of 2007... and happy reading to you all!

public furniture as social space

These benches were not only a unique interpretation of the way's in which one uses - or occupies - a bench, they were also a clear study in pushing the limits of the material's capability. And in closely considering the structural conditions of how a bench meets the ground, supports a body, and stays level.

I've been interested ever since in the social space and level of comfort that can be created by various bench configurations, and have been exploring through sketching:

I've continued to increase the frequency - and exploratory content - of my sketches over the past two months. I'll be using that technique to develop a new bench design I'd like to see in the small downtowns we work in so frequently at In. Site: Architecture. The design will be based on these benches and on the goal of creating comfortable, usable social space via public furniture.

true design

I've always believed that true design isn't about reinventing the wheel, but about reconsidering - and improving - on a norm. Novelty has an actual value, in the interest of new things and the unique experiences that stretch our minds or make a place special, but new simply for the sake of different is usually not enough. New really should be "New & Improved!" - it should transform a useful object for the better.

One of our favorite cities in Scotland, Inverness, seems to have captured the essence of this fact. Their Victorian Park

has a broad range of unique footbridges along the paths connecting a series of River Islands to both banks.

But what I found truly compelling was the series of benches scattered throughout the islands. Each was a unique interpretation of a theme, so that they all felt like part of a series, and yet like no bench you'd seen before.

(I had made a commitment to use the Scotland trip to learn the manual settings on my digital SLR camera. Low-light settings are still difficult for me, so while the bridge photographs are mine, the benches are Christopher's)

 

 

These benches were not only a pleasure to sit on, but they were very gratifying - I caught myself stopping to reconsider the simple, obvious "piece of furniture for sitting in a public place," and even anticipating the next iteration. People were using the benches not only to sit, but to lie on, and as an armature for stretching in the midst of a long jog. They served not only as outdoor furniture, but municipal sculpture.

Sketching for Place

Over the summer, I added Urban Sketchers to my feed reader for some inspiration. I've since been working on sketching more frequently, as I believe that's a skill not to be underestimated. For me, one of the most thorough ways to experience a place is to try and document it. Not to mention the fact that as an Architect, communicating through drawing is one of our most effective tools.

So, doing is the only way for me to improve on a skill such as sketching, and I made a point of sketching while on our recent trip to Scotland:

anticipation in the airport

Aberdeen Beach

the original

sketching further down the beach

somehow, I managed to get down to the beach without any of the four notebooks I packed... so this is the back of a book I was reading ;) 

Pennan, possibly my favorite day