Thinking Through Drawing

3/22/24, 3:43 PM Thinking through drawing - Architectural Review
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Thinking through drawing

4 NOVEMBER 2016 BY CHRIS WILKINSON ESSAYS
Why drawing is a fundamental

element that should always be
part of the design process
When an artist draws from life, he

draws what he sees and interprets it in
his own way – the observer perceives
the subject through the artist’s eyes.
However, when an architect is
designing, he draws what he is thinking
and the drawings are part of the
creative process. The artist’s work is an
https://www.architectural-review.com/essays/thinking-through-drawing 1/6
end in itself, while the architect’s

sketch is perhaps just the start of a
great building. MAGAZINES SHOP
The creative process in architecture is

complex and hard to define, but when
ideas are generated, the simplest way of
communicating them is by drawing. As
Le Corbusier is reputed to have said, ‘I
prefer drawing to talking. Drawing is
faster and leaves less room for lies.’
King’s Cross Gasholders: the development process

can been seen from the very early conceptual
sketches at competition stage, through to an
explanation of the ‘watchmaker’ narrative, to
general arrangement drawings and cladding details.
It is an extremely complex project in which 145
luxury apartments are constructed within the
refurbished Victorian cast-iron frames. Each of the
gasholder frames has a different diameter and the
radial geometry complicates the layout and
construction. The project, which is now close to
completion, was started in 2002 and has
successfully maintained the original concept. This
may, in part, be due to the number of sketches that
occur in several different sketchbooks over the
duration of the project which work alongside more
than 1,000 CAD and Revit drawings
For me, the design process starts with

getting to know the brief and analysing
the site context. This is followed by a
series of sketches in which I explore
ideas as they come through. These early
drawings may lead somewhere, or just
trigger a thought process for discussion
with other members of the design team.
Of course, they only form part of the

process, which includes parametric
modelling and form finding as a vitally
important part of the design. My
concern is that many architects are
missing out on the drawing stage and
moving straight from first thoughts into

believable and seductive imagery in a
very short time. MAGAZINES SHOP
Maggie’s Centre at Oxford: the early sketches

explore the concept of a ‘tree house’. These
progress with CAD drawings, CGIs and an exploded
axonometric projection that shows the fully
worked-out concept of the building. Its complex
geometry of slipped triangular planes, constructed
out of cross-ply laminated timber, is intended to
conjure up a sense of drama and mystery in what is
effectively a single-storey building. The design uses
the sloping site to bring visitors up among the trees
with the belief that contact with nature is helpful
for people when they are ill or suffering from
stress. Photographs of the completed building show
the results of the design process that started with a
sketch
There are dangers arising from this

approach, where the scheme looks
finished before it has been properly
resolved. It is always difficult to
backtrack and the client may believe
that everything works properly, when it
doesn’t. A freehand sketch can often
convey the concept and the design
intent, while still leaving scope for
design development.
I also believe that the act of drawing

helps to stimulate ideas. Although a
blank piece of paper can be
intimidating, it helps to start by
drawing what you know and allowing
ideas to flow, which then have to be
tested before being developed to the
next stages.
MAGAZINES SHOP
Mary Rose Museum: in a very different project,

early sketches show the conceptual ideas for the
layout which works from the inside-out, with the
Mary Rose in the centre of the dry dock that
becomes the ‘shiphall’ in the completed building.
The building takes its toroidal geometry from the
shape of the ship’s hull and is designed to fit into its
unusual context alongside Admiral Nelson’s
flagship HMS Victory and the Admiralty buildings
in Portsmouth’s historic dockyard. A sensitively
illustrated CAD plan and section show the
developed design in a realistic but painterly way,
marking the turning point from concept to
believable form
Whether for a commission or

competition, architects are increasingly
under pressure to produce quick design
solutions and it is important to have a
process that you can rely on. Working
through options is common practice but
surely it must be more efficient to work
through ideas at sketch stage before
deciding how to proceed?
Four projects by Wilkinson Eyre are

featured in the Thinking through
Drawing exhibition, which focuses on
the design process from early sketches
to CAD, CGIs, working drawings and
construction photographs. On show at
the British School at Rome, the
exhibition continues some of the
thinking behind last year’s show at the
Royal Academy in London with the
same name but, by concentrating on
only four projects, it is able to illustrate
how the early sketches influence the
design, and ultimately the built form.
MAGAZINES SHOP
Dyson Campus at Malmesbury: developed over 20

years in collaboration with the design and
manufacturing company of Sir James Dyson, early
sketches in my 1994 sketchbook show the concept
of the wavy roof which floats over the trees on the
edge of the historic Wiltshire city of Malmesbury,
together with sketch details of the entrance
pavilions worked out in a design session with the
engineer, Tony Hunt. A later sketchbook shows the
masterplan for an extended site and concept sketch
for the recently completed D9 Design, Research
and Development Building, clad in huge mirror glass
cladding panels, measuring 5m x 3m each. The
sketch has a note saying ‘keep it simple’ and the
photographs show a minimalist glazed facade with
no decoration except for the delicate tubular steel
escape stairs, which serve each corner of the
building. The reflections of these stairs, together
with the surrounding landscape, successfully
enliven the glazed facades. Alongside D9 is the
Lightning Café, serving 1,000 meals a day, as well
as snacks and coffee. It is also home to one of
James Dyson’s treasures, a beautifully preserved
English Electric Lightning supersonic jet from the
1960s which hangs majestically in the lofty space,
giving it a distinctive atmosphere to inspire the
creative workforce. With this project, perhaps more
than most, the sketches formed an important part
of the collaborative dialogue with the client –
Dyson was personally involved through the process
I am concerned that fewer architects

are using freehand drawing as part of
the design process and are relying more
and more on computers. For me and for
generations of architects before me,
drawing has been an essential part of
life. I believe there is something about
the eye-brain-hand coordination that
seems to stimulate ideas, just as it
serves to communicate them. It can also
be said that although rendering conveys
a design in a superbly accurate way, a
freehand sketch can often express the
emotions and thinking behind the
concept, which can be more successful.
I hope drawing will always remain part

of the architectural process.
MAGAZINES SHOP
DECEMBER 2016
Since 1896, The Architectural Review has

scoured the globe for architecture that
challenges and inspires. Buildings old and new
are chosen as prisms through which arguments
and broader narratives are constructed. In
their fearless storytelling, independent critical
voices explore the forces that shape the homes,
cities and places we inhabit.
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3/22/24, 3:43 PM Thinking through drawing - Architectural Review

Search...  SUBSCRIBE LOGIN / REGISTER

Why drawing is a fundamental

When an artist draws from life, he

end in itself, while the architect’s

The creative process in architecture is

King’s Cross Gasholders: the development process

For me, the design process starts with

Of course, they only form part of the

moving straight from first thoughts into

Maggie’s Centre at Oxford: the early sketches

There are dangers arising from this

I also believe that the act of drawing

Mary Rose Museum: in a very different project,

Whether for a commission or

Four projects by Wilkinson Eyre are

Dyson Campus at Malmesbury: developed over 20

I am concerned that fewer architects

I hope drawing will always remain part

Since 1896, The Architectural Review has

Join the conversation online

Media pack Monographs Newsletters Subscriptions Cookie policy Privacy policy

COPYRIGHT © 2020 EMAP PUBLISHING LTD

You might also like