Graphic thinking for architects and designers

Graphic Thinking

for Architects

& Designers

TH RD E ITION

Graph·c Thinking

for Architects

& Designers

PAUL ASEAU

JOHN WILEY & SONS, INC.

New York Chichester Weinheim Brisbane Singapore Toronto

Thi s book is printed on acid-free paper. e
Copyright il' 2001 by John Wiley & Sons . All rights reserved.
Published simultaneously in Canada.
Int erior Design: Da vid Levy
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
Laseau, Paul, 1937
Graphic thinking for ar chitects & designers I Paul
Laseau.-3rd. ed.
p. em.

Includes bibliographical references and ind ex.

ISBN 0-471-35292-6 (paper)

1. Architectural dr awing. 2. Communication in ar chi
tectural design . 3. Architecture-Sketch-books.
4. Graphic arts. I. Title.
NA2705 .L38 2000
720 '.28 '4-dc21 99-086809
Printed in the United States of America.
10 98 7

Contents •

Foreword vi 8 Discovery 141

Preface to the Third Edition vii 9 Verification 163

Preface to the First Edition viii

COMMUNICATIONAcknowledgments ix

1 Introduction 1

10 Process 179

11 Individual Design 189

BASICSKILLS 12 Team Design 203

2 Drawing 17 13 Public Design 217

3 Conventions 39 14 Conclusion 231

4 Abstraction 55 Notes 237

5 Expression 67 Bibliography 239

Illustration Credits 242

Index 244
APPLIED SKILLS
6 Analysis 81

7 Exploration 115

v

Foreword

P
aul Las eau proposes two re late d ideas: th e
first is that of "graphic th inking"; the second
is graphic thin king as a device for communi
cation between the de signe r and the designed
for. The follow ing brief remarks are addressed to the
relationship between the two ideas.
Histor ically, building design was not so indiffer
eh t to human well-being that "communication with
the people" becam e an issue until the act of drawing
wa s divided into two specialized activities. The first
wa s design drawi ng, in w hich the design er expres sed
his or her ideas. The second was drafting used to
instruct the builder.
Design drawing began as and remains a means of
gen erating ideas, for tapping initial con cepts to be
sorted out and developed, or simply as an enjoyable
ac tivity. Dra fting is an eight-hour task per formed
daily, fill ing sheets of paper w ith precise lines dic
tated by others.
Long ago, when the work of individual craftsme n
beca me larger and more com plex, when a cathedral
rather than a chair was to be designed, dimension s
had to be establis he d so th at th e work of a single
cra ftsman could be coo rdinated with th e w ork of
many. Drawing was introduced as a creative device
for plan ning work. •
Cr aftsm en ha ve always used drawings to help
th em visua lize the ir ideas as they made adjustments
in th e continuous pro cess of fitt ing parts tog ether.
Drawing under these conditions is inseparable from
the work itself. Some historian s say that the working
draw ings for the great churches of the twelfth and
thirteenth centuries wer e drawn on boards that wer e
later nai led into the construction.
But drawing also has other purposes. Th e division
of labor in cr eases productivity. Art ifacts requiri ng
several weeks of wo rk by a single skilled cra ftsman
are divid ed into sm all er st andardized w ork tasks.
Pr oduction is increased as skill is eliminated. The
craftsm an' s expression of materia l, design sen se, and
sketches are banished from the wo rkplace . Drawings
an d specifications pre de term ine all fac ets of the
work.
Design decisions are give n to a new class of wo rk
men who do not work with the mater ial but instead
•

direct th e ac tions of others and who communicate
their de cisions to th ose who work through drawings
made by draftsm en . Designing, as a separate task ,
has come into being. Th e professional designer, th e
professional draftsman, and the assembly line occur
simultan eously as related phenomena .
This all occ urred some time ago, but the momen
tum of the change from craftsm an ship to draftsman
ship , brought abou t by the pe culiar form of
industrialization we have chosen to adopt, persists. It
now extend s to the division of labor in the designer's
office. Th e building of great bu ildings is no longer the
creation of master craftsmen led by a master builder
but of architectural offices organized along the lines
of industrial production . The task of the arch itect has
been divided and subdivided into an assembly line of
designer, construction manager, interior desi gner,
decora tor, struc tural, electrical, and mechanical engi
neers, an d draftsm en . Design decisions once made by
the designer on the drawing board are now made by
the programmer on computer printou ts.
There are those of us w ho believe that indu strial
ization could have been achieved w ithout destroying
the craftsman 's skill, love, and respect for material
and the joy of building. We find it even less desirable
tha t the joy of creativity and graphic thinking that
accompanies that activity should leave the designer's
office for the memory bank of a computer.
The built world and artifacts around us are evi
den ce of the almost fatal error of basing design on the
mindless work of the assembly line . To develop pro
gramming and operat ional resea rch based on mind
less design would be to con tinue a dis astrous historic
continu um.
Graphic thinking is of course necessa ry to help
rejuven ate a moribund design system. But communi
ca tion "with the pe ople" is not enough. Cr ea tiv ity
itself must be shared, and sha red wi th everyone from
dowel kn ocker to "Liebe r Meister." The need for
grap hic thinking is great, but it is greater on th e
wor kbenches of the assembly lin es at River Rouge
th an on the desks of the chief designers of Skidmore,
Ow ings & Merrill.
- F ORREST W ILSON, 1980
vi

Preface to the Third Edition •

T
wenty years have passed since th e first publi
cation of this book. The events of the inter
vening years have served to re inforce my
in itial assumption s and th e poin ts made by
Forrest Wilson in th e Foreword.
The accelerated developments in persona l com
puters and th eir application to architectural design
and constructi on ha ve raised more for cefully the
question of the role of individual thought and creativ
ity wi thin processe s tha t are increasingly complex
and special ized. Will in dividuals experience more
opportunities for expression and contributi on or will
their contributions be devalued because of the speed
and p recision of computer- dr iven processes?
Although th e In ternet /web has dra matically
increased individu al access, two major philosophical
camps still guide computer development and applica
tions. One camp se es th e co mput er as a way to
extend and improve tradi tional business organization,
with its segmentation of tasks and relianc e on spe
cialists. The other camp sees the computer as a way
to re volutionize business by broade ning the scope
. and impact of the individual to the benefit of both the
individual and the organization. One view is of ind i
viduals supporting information; the other is of info r
mation supporting individuals.
A pr emise of the first edition of this book was that
individu al, creative thinking has a vital role in a pres,
ent and futur e society that must cope with complex,
interrelat ed problems. Add ressing such problems
depends up on a compreh ensive unders tanding of
th eir nature ra ther than shoehorn ing them into con
venient, simplistic, th eoretical models. And visual
communication provides an im portant tool for
describing and understanding complexity. Inc reased
comprehensive, ra ther than spe cialized, know ledge
in the possession of individuals should benefit both
the orga nization and the individual. In their book, In
Search of Excellence,I Peters and Waterman illustrated
that the effectiveness of organizations depends up on
an understanding of values, aspira tions, an d mean
ings th at is shared by all me mbers. We are also
becoming more aware that the mental and physical
health of individuals is a valid as well as practical
concer n of organizations.
vii

I
Preface to the First Edition •

n the fall of 1976, while participating in a discus
sion group on design communication at the
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, I had the
occ asion to mention my book Graphic Problem
Solving. Essentially, that book was an attempt at con
vincing architects to apply their freehand concept
gathering skills to nontraditional problems dealing
more with the processes than the products of archi
tecture. During the discussion, Fuller Moore stated
that the graphic skills I had assumed to be part of
architectural training were being neglected in the
schools and that a more basic book on drawing in
support of thinking was needed. Soon after, I had the
chance to talk to several architects about the sketches
they use to develop designs in contrast to the "fin
ished drawings they use in presentations." Most cre
ative architects had developed impressive freehand
sketching skills and felt comfortable sketching while
thinking. Some architects drew observations or
design ideas in small sketchbooks they carried with
them at all times. Both the architects and the educa
tors I interviewed expressed concern over the appar
en t lack of freehand graphic skills in pe ople now
entering the profession.
As I began to collect materials for this book, 1
wondered about the relevance of sketching in archi
tecture. Could sketching be better applied to design
ing as practiced tod ay? The answer to this qu estion
depends on an examination of the present challenges
to architectural design:
1. To be more responsive to needs, a problem-solv
ing process.
2. To be more scientific, more reliable, or pr'>
dict able.
The response to these challenges was suggested
by Heinz Von Foerster:
...the language of architecture is connotative lan
guage because its intent is to initiate interpretation.
The creative architectural space begets creativity,
new insights, new choices. It is a catalyst for cogni
tion. This suggests an ethical imperative that applies
not only to architects but also to anyone who acts on
that imperative. Act always so as to: increase,
enlarge, enhance the number of choices.I
Relating these ideas to the challenges enumerated
earlier, I see two correspo nding imperatives:
1. Architects should solve problems wi th peopl e
instead of for them by helping them under stand
their ne eds and the choices of designs th at me et
those ne eds. This is done by bringing th ose who
use the buildings into the process of de signing
those bu ildings.
2. Architects mus t better understand science and
how much it has in common with architectur e.
Jacob Bronowski pointed out that the creative sci
entist is more in terested in exploring and expand
ing ideas than in establishing fixed "truths." The
unique quality of human beings lies in th e
increase rather than the decrease of diversity.
Within this context, sketches can contribute to
de sign, first by facilitating the exploration and diver
sity of each designer's th inking. Second, sketches can
help open up the design process by developing com
munication with people instead of presenting con clu
sions to people.
The notion of graphic thinking grew out of the
recognition that sketching or drawing can and should
support the de signe r's thinking. I realize that some
readers would be more comfortable w ith a bo ok
about either thi nking or drawi ng, but I felt it was cri t
ical to deal with th eir interaction. Pulling th em apart
seemed to be like tr ying to understand how a fish
swims by studying the fish and the water separately.
I hope you will be able to bear with the rough spots
in this book and find some th in gs that wi ll help in
your work.
viii

AcknowLedgments •

T
his book is dedicated to those architects who
generously took time to discuss their use of
drawings in de sign during my or iginal and
su bseq uent research . Many of them also pro
vided sketches to illustrate the text. Th eir dedication
to creativity in architecture, enthusiasm for dr awing,
and comme nts about their design processes were a
gre at he lp and inspiration for my work. Among these
architects, I am especially indebted to David Stieglitz,
Thomas Bee by, Morse Payne , Thomas Larson,
Michae l Ge bhart, Romaldo Giurgola, James Tice,
Nor man Crowe, Harry Egink, Kirby Lockard , and
Steven and Cathi House.
Recognition is due th e following people for the ir
particularly important contributions to this effort:
Fuller Moore for first suggesting the idea.
Robert McKim for his ins ights to visual thinking and
his en cou ragement.
Jim Anderson for vital comments on graphic commu
nication.
Karl Brown for comments and other valuab le ass is
tan ce.
Michele Laseau for technical assistance.
Jack Wyman, Ken Car penter, Juan Bonta, Charles
Sappenfield, and other prese nt and past col
leagues at the College of Architecture and
Planning, Ball State University for com ments and
moral support.
A special thanks to Forrest Wilson for his enthusi
astic sup port at the humbling outset of this effort.
Finally, thanks must be given to my wife, Peggy,
and children , Michele, Kevi n, an d Made leine, for
their great patience and sacrifices while I struggled
with revisions.
Previously published draw in gs were pho
tographed by Jerry Hoffman and Steven Talley.
ix

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1 Introduction
G
raphic thinking is a term I have adopted to
describe thinkin g assisted by sketch ing. In
architecture, this type of thinking is usually
associated w ith the concep tua l design stages
of a projec t in which th inking and sketching work
closely together as st im ulants for developing ideas.
Interest in this form of thinking is promoted by a
reexamination of the history of architectural design,
the impact of visual communication in society, and
new concepts of the role of design and designers.
The re is actually a very strong tradit ion of grap hic
th inking in archi tecture. Looking through reprodu c
tions of the notebooks of Leon ardo da Vinci, we are
struck by the dynam ic thinking they re flect. It is
impossible to really understand or appreciate da
Vinci's thinking apart from his drawi ngs because the
graphic images and th e thinking are one, a unity. A
closer look at these ske tches reveals certain featur es
that are instruc tive for anyone interested in graphic
th inking.
1. There are many different ideas on one page-his
attention is constantly shifting from one subject to
another.
2 . The way da Vinci looks at prob lems is di verse
both in method and in scale- there are often per
spectives, sections, plans, de tails, an d panoram ic
views on the same page.
3 . The thinking is exploratory, open-ended - the
sketches are loose and fragmented while showing
how th ey were derived. Many alternativ es for
extending the ideas ar e suggested. The spectator is
invited to participate.
Wh at a marvelous example! Here is a mind in fer
ment, using drawings as a means of discovery rather
than as a way to impress other peop le.
Although it is often difficult to find records of
developmental sketches in hist orical documents,
there is eno ugh surviving evide nce to indicate th at
the use of sketches for thinking was common to
arch itects throughout history. Depe nding on the dic
tates of the building trades or customs, the draw ing
conventions varied from plan to section to elevation.
For almost two centuries, the Ecole des Beaux Arts in
Paris used the plan esquisse as the foundation for its
Figure 1-2 By Edwin Lutyens. Castle Drago and British Pavilion
1911 Exposition, Rome.
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Figure 1-3 By Edwin Lutyens. Castle Drago and British Pavilion
1911 Exposition, Rome.
train ing method . With th e establishment of large
arch itectural firms in the Uni ted States, three
dimension al scale models gradually replaced draw
ing for the purposes of design development. Th e use
of de signing sketches further declined w ith the
advent of professiona l model makers and profes
siona l renderer s.
1

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Figure 1-4 By Alvar Aalto.
Th ere has, of course., been an int ense interest in
architec ts ' drawings re kindled by exhibits like the
Beaux-Arts and 200 Years of American Architectural
Draw ings. But the emphasis is mostly on comm uni
cation of the final fixed product , and these presenta
tion drawings tell us practically nothing about the
way in w hich the buildings were designed. The
thinkin g sketches ar e necessary to understand the
step-by-step process. Yet even when the thinking
sketch es are available, as in the do cuments of the
work of LeCorbusier, they are usually overlooked in
favor of th e renderings or photos of the finished
work. We are just beginning to appreciate the impor
tance LeCorb usier placed on sketches. As Geoffrey
Broadbent no te s, "All the internal harmony of the
work is in the drawings.... It is incredible that artists Figure 1-5 By Thomas Larson. The Grandberg Residence.
today should be indi fferent (even hostile) to th is
prime mover, this' scaffolding' of the project. "l
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Introduction2

•
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Figure 1-6 By Thomas Beeby. House of Virgil.
Among modern architects, Alvar Aalto has left us
probably one of the best models of the graphic think
ing tradition. His sketches are rapid and diverse; they
deftly probe the subject. Hand, eye, and mi nd are
intensely concentrated. The sketches record th e level
of development, proficiency, and clarity of Aalto's
ideas. There are many other architects w hose work
we can turn to, particul arly here in the United States,
where we are exp eriencing a resurgence of sketching.
Their draw ings ar e inventive, diverse, and provoca
tive. Whethe r they are making notes in a sketchbook
or turning over con cepts in the design studio , these
creative designers are looking for something special
over and above solving the design problem , like the
gourmet w ho is looking for somethin g more than
food . They enjoy the eureka experience, and they
enjoy th e search as well. This book is really about
finding th ings, about seeing new ideas, about discov
ery, and abo ut sharing ideas and discoveries.
Figure 1-7 By Norman Jaffe.
Int roduction 3

Figure 1-8 Battle of Cety I with the Cheta.
Figure 1-9 Greek geometry Figure 1-10 ExpLoration map. Figure 1-11 Constellation of stars
VISUAL COMMUNICATION THROUGH TIME
Throughout history, vision has had an important
imp act on th inking. Starting with th e caveman, draw
ings we re a way of "freezing" ideas and events out
side of him and creati ng a history. In many ways, the
"second wo rld " man created through his images was
critical to the evolution of thinking. Man was able to
separate the here an d now from what could be imag
ined, the future. Through images, the world of the
spirit, the ideal world of mythology, and compelling
utopias became immedia te an d real. Th e ideals of an
entire culture could be contained in one picture; the
unspeakable could be shared with others. From earli
est times, this visual expression of thinking has been
communa l. Once a concept, such as the notion of
man be ing able to fly, wa s converted to an image, it
was free to be reinterpreted again and again by others
un til the airplane was invented.
Man used signs and symbols lon g before written
languages were ado pted. Early w ritten languages,
such as Egyptian hieroglyphics, were highly special
ized sets of symbols derived from pictures. Th e devel
opment of geometry, combining mathematics w ith
diagrams, made it pos sible to think of structure and
other abstractions of reality. This led"to the const ruc
tion of objects or buildings of monumental scal e from
desi gns. In addition to tr ying to make se nse of his
immediate surroundings, man used drawings to
reach outnto the unknown. Ma ps recons tituted
from notes and sketches of explorers spar ked the
im agination and stimulated new discoveries about
our world and the un iverse.
In spite of the ascendance of writt en language,
visual comm unication continue s to be an essential
part of the wa y we think. This is revealed in these
phrases that liberally sprinkle our everyday conversa
tion: "I see what you mean ; take anothe r look at the
situation ; put this all in pe rspective." Although
research opinion varies, it seems generally accepted
that 70 to 80 p ercent of what we learn IS through
sigh t. ;:jight seems to be the most rapid and compre-
Introdu ction4

Ir= mI
I
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Figure 1-14Figure 1-12 Figure 1-13
Figure 1-15 Figure 1-16
he nsive of our se nses for rec eIvm g in formation.
Through centuries of condition ing, we rely on vision
for an ea rly warn ing of danger. Not only have we
com e to depend on sight as a primary means of
understanding the world, but we ha ve also learn ed to
transla te information pi cked up by the senses in to
visual clu es so tha t, in many ways, sigh t is actu all y
used as a substitu te for the other senses.
There is ample evidence that visual comm unica
tion is becomi ng an even more powerful force in our
lives. The most obvious exam ple is te levision ,
thr ough which we can explore th e skies, the ocea ns,
and the societ ies of our shrinking p lanet. We re ly
heavily on graphics to explain and persuade.
Cartoons have become a very sophisticated mean s of
distilling an d reflecti ng our cultur e. But the most sig
nificant revolutio n is the sh ift of visual communica
tion from the realm of specialis ts to that of the
gen eral public. Instantly developing film and video
recorders are just the beg inning of th e visual tools that
w ill becom e as common as the PC an d the calc ulator.
The poten tia l of visual comm u nication w ill be
tested as we begin the twent y-first century. Two over
riding features are the de luge of information that we
must absorb and the increasingly interactive na ture
of the problems we mus t solve. As Edward Hamilto n
put it, "Up...to the present age we hav e absorbed
information in a one-th ing-at-a-time, an abstract, lin-
Figure 1-17
ear, fragmented but sequential way... . Now, the term
pattern...w ill apply increasingly in understanding th e
w orld of total-environ mental stimuli into which we
are moving.'? We seek pattern s, no t only to screen for
significance of informatio n, but also to illustrate
processes or stru ctures by w hich our world opera tes.
The emerging technology for collecting, storing, and
disp layi ng differen t models of reality holds exciting
promise. Computer-cons tructed satellite maps, video
games, comput er graphics, and the mi niaturization of
computing and recording equipment will open up a
new era in visual com munication.
The full use of this new capability w ill be directly
related to the develop ment of our ow n visual think
ing. "Com puters canno t see or dream , nor can they
cr eate: computers are language-bo und. Sim ilarly;
thinkers w ho cannot escape the st ructure of lan
guage, w ho are unaware that thinking can occur in
ways having little to do w ith language, are often ut i
lizing only a small part of their brain that is indeed
like a computer." This observation by Robert McK im
points out the critic al issue of man-machine inter ac
tion . The new equipment is of no va lue in itself; it is
on ly as good as our imagination can make it. If we are
to realize the potential of visual technology, we must
learn to think visua lly.
Visual Communication Thro ugh Time 5

Figure 1-18 Conceptual sketches.
VISUALTHINKING
The study of visual thinking has developed in maj or
part from the study of creativity wi thin the field of
psycho logy. The work of Rudolph Arnheim in th e
psychology of art has been particularly signi ficant. In
his book, Visual Thinking, he laid a basic framework
for research by dissolving the artificial barrier I
bet ween th inking and the ac tion of the senses. "By
fcognitive, I mean all mental operations involved in

re ceiving, storing, and processing of information: ~.- . ;//
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sensory perception , memory, thinking , learning.'" r Ii,,"·
This was a new w ay of understanding percep tion , /" ":k'~ 'f '<
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J ~'h!"..J..{J. .. .._. knamely, an int egration of mind and senses ; the focu s
-. /,:~,./of the study of creativity sh ifts from the mind or th e
;;." f '" ( "...senses to the interac tion of both. Visual th inking is . ~- -,' ''''';-- . i. . ,
. - ' - " 0 ~ i ...~ .-.... ,therefore a form of th inking that uses the products of
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:11< ' "lY.<r:;;c .
context of designing, the focus of this book is on th e G

third product of vision, drawings or sketches. When . 'if';' '.,
' l.' - " . ' , --- -'c rt' I ..:J., ~.. 'thinking becomes externalized in th e form of a ) 'I-...... l'oIO" j
.
sketched image, it can be said to have become ..< 1/, '1
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graphic. .
There are strong indications that thinking in any oIl.: ' {
field is greatly enha nced by the use of more than one
sense, as in doing while seeing. Although this book's
focus is on architectura l design, it is my hope that
Jt,~~I' .other readers will find the explanation s and examples y .] I t ,,·
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. •. fuseful. The long history of architectura l design has
." ., ,, ~ , . :'l'...".f' ' c....~t".prod uced a grea t wealth of graphic tech niques and ":

imagery in response to highly complex, comprehen " ~. t~
sive, quantitative-qual itative problems. Today, archi

!
tectural design attempts to deal w ith our total 1
man-made environment , a prob lem that is personal
and pressing for everyone. The graphic thinking tools
used by archi tec ts to solve problems of intera ction, Figure 1-19 Conceptual sketches.
conflict, efficie ncy, and aesthetics in buildings have
now become important to all parts of society with its
own increasingly complex problems.
Introduction
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Figure 1-20 Conceptual sketches using digital media.
Visual Thinking

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Figure 1-21 Graphic thin king process.
GRAPHIC THINKING AS A COMMUNICATION
PROCESS
The process of graphic th inking can be seen as a con
versation wi th ourselves in w hich we communicate
w ith sketches. Th e communication process involves
the sketched image on the paper, the eye, the brain,
an d the hand. How can this apparently closed ne t
work gen erate ideas that are not already in the brain?
Part of the answer lies in th e definition of an ide a.
Th e so-called new ideas are really a new way of look
ing at and combining old ideas. All ideas can be said
to be connected; the thinking process re shuffles
ideas, focuses on pa rts, and recombines th em . In the
diagram of th e graphic-thin ki ng process, all four
pa rts-eye, brain, hand, a nd sketch- have the capa
bility to add, subtract, or mo dify the information that
is being passed through the communication loop. The
eye, assisted by pe rception, can select a focal point
and screen out other informat ion. We can re adily
accept that the brain can add in formation. But th e
other two parts, han d and sketch, are also important
to the proce ss. A difference often exists between
what we intend to draw and wha t actually is draw n.
Draw ing ability, materials, and our mood can all be
sources of change. And yes, even the image on paper
is subjec t to change. Differences in light intensity and
angle, the size and distance of the image from the eye,
reflectivity of pap er, and transp are ncy of media all
open up new possibilities.
The potential of graphic thinking lies in the con
tin uou s cycling of informati on-laden images from
paper to eye to brain to hand and back to the paper.
Theoreticall y, the more often the information is
passed aroun d the loop , th e more opportunities for
change. In the sequen ce of images opposite, for exam
ple, I started with a sketch of car toon-l ike bubble s to
Introduction
rep resent spaces in a house tha t is yet to be designed.
Depending on my experience, int er ests, and what I
am trying to do , I will see certain things in the sketch
and ign or e others . The resulting perce pt ual image
seg regates sp ecial-use spaces, the living room and
kitchen, from several other mo re private or support
spaces. Next, I form a mental image to further organ
ize th e spaces and give them or ienta tion bas ed on
what I already kn ow about th e site or a south ern
exposur e for the living room and kitchen. Wh en this
mental image is transferred to paper once mo re, it
goes through yet another change in which the special
spaces begin to take on distinctive forms.
This is, of course, an overs im plification of the
process. Graphic thi nkin g, like visu al com munication
with th e real world, is a contin uous process.
Information is sim ultaneously darting all over the
ne twork. When graphic thinking is most active, it is
similar to wa tching a fantastic array of fireworks and
looking for the one you really enjoy. Not only is it
productive, it is fun. In Arnheim's words, "Far from
being a passive mechanism of registration like the
pho tographic camera , our vis ual apparatu s copes
with the incoming images in active str uggle;"
Visual thinkin g and visual per ception cannot be
separated from other types of thinking or perception .
Ver bal thinking, for example, adds mo re to the idea of
a ki tchen or living room w ith su ch qualifiers as
brigh t, open , or comfort able. Obviously, graphic
thinking is not all you need to know in order to solve
problems or think creatively, but it ca n be a ba sic
tool. Graphic thinking can open up chan nels of com
m unica tion w ith ourselve s and those people w ith
w hom we work. The sketches generated are impor
tan t because they show how we are th inking about a
problem, not just w hat we th ink about it.
8

I
Figure 1-22 Evolution of images.
Figure 1-23 Dialogue.
Graphic th inking takes advantage of the power of
visual perception by making vis ual images extern al
and explicit. By putti ng th em on paper, we give vis ual
images objectivity outside our brain , an existence of
their ow n over time. As Robert McKim poi nts out,
gra phic thin king, as externalized th inking:
has several advantages over internalized thought.
First, direct sensory involvement with materials pro
vides sensory nourishment-literally 'food for
thought.' Second, thin king by manipulating an actual
structure permits serendipity-the happy accident,
the unexpected discovery. Third, thinking in the
direct context of sight, touch, and mo tion engenders
a sense of immediacy, actuality, and action. Finally,
the externalized thought structure provides an object
for critical contemplation as well as a visible form
tha t can be shared with a colleague."
To the person w ho must reg ularly seek new solu
tions to problems, who must think creatively, the se
qualities of immediacy, stimulation, accide nt, and
contemplation are very importa nt. To these qualities I
would add one more special att rib ute of graph ic
thinkin g, sim ulta neity. Sketches allow us to see 'a
great amount of information at the same time, expos
ing re lationships and describing a wide range of sub
tleties. Sketch es are direct an d represen ta tive.
According to Arn he irn, "The power of visual language
lies in its sp ontaneous evidence, its almost ch ildlike
simplicity.... Darkness means darkness, thin gs that
be long together are shown together, and what is great
and high appear s in large size and in a high location. "7
Graphic Thinking As a Communication Process 9

I
,

' -1 ','
.}
' -Y
.!'--,
~ ~
~:;..~ ~
.,.
,.
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Figure 1-24 By David Stiegletz. Development sketches on back of a placemat, Siegler Residence.
Figure 1-25 Front of placemat, Hotel Mercur, Copenhagen.
10 Introduction

EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION
A standard story that many architects delight in
tell ing de scribes how the most ba sic conc ept for a
multimillion-dollar project was first scribbled on the
back of a restaurant na pkin. I have wo nd ered why
both the teller and the listener always seem to derive
am use ment from such a story. Perhaps the story
restores confidence in the strength of the individual
de signe r, or maybe it is the incongruity that de cisions
on such im portant matters ar e being made in such a
re laxed, casua l mann er. Viewing th is story in the con
text of graphic thinking, it is not at all sur prising th at
in spired, inventive thinking sho uld take place at a
resta urant tabl e. Not only are th e eyes, m inds, and
hands of at least two persons interacting with th e
images on the napkin , but also they ar e further stim
ulated by conversation. Besi des, these pe rsons are
separated from their day-to-day work problems; they
are rel axing in a pleasant atmosphere, and with th e
consumptio n of good food , th eir level of anxiety is
significan tly recfuced. They ar e open, ready, prepared
for discovery; indeed, it would be surprising only if
the most creative ideas were not born in this setting.
To be effective communicators, arc hitects must:
1. Unders ta nd the basic element s of communica
tion-the comm unicator, th e receiver or audience,
the medium, and the context-e-and their role in
effect iven ess.
2. Develop a graphic language from which to dr aw
the most effective sketch es for specific com muni
cati on tasks.
1 . Never take for granted th e process of communica
tion and be w illing to tak e the time to examin e
their effectiveness.
Basic communication theory stresses the com mu
nication loop between the communicator or sender
and the receiver in order to attain maximum effec
tiveness. Response from th e audience is essential to a
speaker who wants to get his messa ge across. The
information coming from the receiver is as important
as what th e sender, the architect, transmits. And so
we must pay very clo se attentio n to th ose pers ons
with whom we hope to comm unica te. The best
approac h is to try to place one se lf in th eir shoes.
What ar e th ey expecting? What are th eir concerns?
Equally important, we should be awa re of our moti
vations and concerns. Do we have an unconscious or
hidden agenda?
S~N 17E:e. ~e lv£R
c /il'ntArGhrtt.e..t
A ~d l eYc.eOl'$ I~"'(.Y'
CONlE-XT
ObJe-d'lVe?1LoCCtt IOl',flo'V lI'DI)/Io't n0 11Ml / Clrcuyy,.<;{o.I1C1'S
Figure 1-26 The structure of communications.
As further chapters review th e many ways
graphic thinking is used in the practice of architec
ture, it is critical to remember that individ uals cannot
really be cut off from their environment or their soci
ety. The graphic thinking of one person thrives in the
presence of good compa ny and a su pportive atmos
phere. Seek both enthusiastically.
Altho ugh the medium with which this book deals
is principally fre ehand sketches, the basic methods are
applicable to many graphic media. But each specific
medium has some unique characteristics th at have
special effec ts on communication. Expe rimentation
with different media is the fastest route to using them
effectively. Although there are books on th e use of
these med ia, th ere is no su bstitute for practice,
because we all have different needs and abilities.
The context for communication includes su ch
th ings as location , time, duration, weather, and type
of space, what took place before the commu nic ation,
what will take place after. We may be able to control
some of these context variables, but we cannot afford
to igno re them.
Effective Communication 11

I
t

oo
o
~ ~ st- > ..'.~
0:.;::,.()
i: ~o Q
,.:;.
1.'1 1 ..
j;~
jii!11
Figure 1-27 Gym, St. Mary's College, C. F. Murphy Associates,
architects.
THE ROLE OF GRAPHICTHINKING IN
ARCHITECTURE
To realize the potential of graphic th inking in archi
tecture, we must understand today's prevailing atti
tudes on the design process and the use of draw ings
in that process. In the early 1960s, A. S. Levens was
able to write with confidence tha t:
One source of confusion in thinking about design is
the tendency to identify design with one of its lan
guages, drawing. This fallacy is similar to the confu
sion which would result if musical composition were
to be identi fied with the writing of notes on a sta ff of
five lines. Design, like musical composition, is done
essentially in the mind and the making of drawings
or writing of notes is a recording process.8
Today, we have broade r conc ep ts of how and
where design takes place, but drawings are still nor
ma lly th ought of as simply representations of ideas;
Figure 1-28 Wall section, Headquarters Building, Smith,
Hinchman & Grylls Associates, Inc.
their purpose is to explain to other pe ople the prod
ucts of our th inkin g, the conclus ions. Tra ining in
ar chitectural school s has been primarily gear ed
towar d the at tainment of finished presentation skills,
while in architectural offices, the emphasis has been
on turning out working drawings that clearly pr esent
the necessary directives for the contractors.
In response to Levens' ana logy, graphic th inking
treats drawings more like a piano than a score sheet.
Like composition, design is possible without an
instrument to provide feedback, bu t for most des ign
ers this is not very produ ctive. Design thinking and
design communica tion should be interactive; this
implies new roles for graph ics. As we anticipate the
potential of computers and other evolving communi
cation tech nol ogies, the con cept of feedback will be
key to effective use of media.
12 Introduction

•
INDlVl DUAL
IEAM
Figure 1-29
ORGANIZATION OF THE BOOK
The first major sec tion of the book is devoted to the
basic grap hic th inking ski lls of representation and con
ception . The section includes four chapters dealing
with drawing, the use of conventions, abstraction, and
expression. My aim is to promo te an awareness of the
rich variety of graphic tools availab le for adding pro
ductivity and enjoyme nt to th inking activities.
The se cond sectio n of the book addresses the
applicat ion of graphic thinking to de sign processes.
Its four chapters discuss analysis, exploration, discov
ery, and verificat ion . Although there are some obvious
applicat ions of these uses to a number of design
process models, I have purposely avoided promoting
a specific design process. One of the problems wi th
design process models is their accept ance in too sim
plistic a way; types of th inking or behavior are cate
gorized, and the int ermeshing of processes and ideas
is ignored. Instead of cat egories, we ne ed flex ibility.
Ma nip ulat ion of graphic images, for example, might
be used at many stages of de signing. I still wo uld not
attempt to guess w here it wo uld be ha ndy for a spe
cific proj ect . Manipulation of the stereotypes for a
bu ilding could get designing started. Distortion of an
elevation might reveal a new approach to de tailing.
Reversal of a process diagram might suggest a modifi
cation of the building program.
The third section of the book considers graphic
thinking as communi cation in three des ign contexts:
individual, team, and public. The emphasis is on better
communication so that ideas can be sha red.
This book is a collection of images, ideas, and
de vices that I hope are he lp ful and enjoyable. The
approach is eclectic rather than discr iminating, inclu
sive not exclusive, expectant not conclu sive. The
intent is not simply to describe examples bu t to con
vey th e excitement of grap hic th inking and even
make it contagious. We all have sp ecial , uniqu e
capacities for th inking, w hich, if unlocked, could
make great contributions to th e solution of problems
we face. Arn heim emphasizes tha t "Every great artist
gives birth to a new universe, in which the fam iliar
things look the way they have never before looked to
anyone." 9 This book is written in anticipation of a
time when many of us w ill be able to give birth to our
own uni verses.
Organization of the Book 13

2 Drawing

T
hiS chapter's focus is on the basic representa
tion skills help ful to graphic thinking meth ods
as prese nted in the remainder of this book.
Developing freehand draw ing skills is neces
sary to th e attainmen t of graphic thinking and per
ceptual skills. Some might say, "I really admire good
draw ings and those designers who have a quick
hand, but 1 hav e accepted the fact tha t 1w ill never be
that good." Bunk! It just is not SO l Anyone can learn
to draw we ll. If you don't believe me, ta ke the time to
talk to people who draw very wel l. You w ill find that
their first drawi ngs w ere ten tative . Th ey probably
took every opportunity to draw. With tim e and hard
work, th ey gradua lly improved and never regretted
the effort they made.
There are two impo rtant condi tions to keep in
mind when trying to develop any skill:
1 . Skill comes with repetition.
2. The surest way to practice any skill is to enjoy
what you are doing.
Because of the he avy emphas is on rationalization
in formal education, many people mis takenly th ink
that they can master a ski ll, such as drawing, simply
by understanding concepts. Con cepts are helpful. but
practice is essential.
The orchestra conductor Artie Shaw once explained
why he refused all requests by parents to audition the ir
childr en. He felt that the worst thing you can do to a
talented child is to tell him he has talent. The greats in
the music bu siness, rega rdless of na tu ral talent,
became successful through hard work and a commit
ment to their craft. They believed in themselves but
knew they would have to struggle to prove themselves
to others. The focus of energy, sense of competition ,
and years of hard work are essential to becoming a fine
musicran.
•

The knowledge that draw ing and thinking are
important to ar chitecture is not sufficient. Natural
draw ing talent is no t enough. To sus tain th e neces
sary lifeti me effort of learn ing and perfecting graphic
thinking, we need to find pleasure in drawing an d
think ing. We must be challen ged to do it better than
those architects we admire do. Morse Payne of The
Architec ts Collaborative once noted th e infl uence of
Ralph Rapsin on many talented designers: "To watch
Ralph kn ock out one of his beautiful perspectives in
fifteen minutes was tru ly inspiring. It set a goal for us
that was very challenging."1 Fortunately, there is still
a lot of respect within the architec tural profession for
high-quality draw ing. The person who can express
himself bot h graphicall y and verba lly on an
impromptu basis is highly ' valued. When hiring,
offices oft en loo k for ability to communicate over
ability to be origina l. They know that your ability to
develop ideas with them is much more important in
the long run than the idea that you initially bring to
them.
It is possible to be an architect w ithout having
well-developed graphic thinking skills. A barber or a
bartender can surely cut hair or serve drinks without
being able to carry on a conversation. But the job is a
lot easier if you enjoy talking w ith people, an d you
will probably do more business. 1believe that graphic
thinking can make design more enjoyable and more
effective.
Four types of basic ski lls sup port grap hic think
ing: observation , pe rception , discrim ination, and
imagination. Although these are considered to be pr i
marily th inking skills, in this chapter 1 have tried to
show how graphic means may be used to promo te
these skills an d attain a fundamental integra tion of
gra phics and thinking . The sequence in w hich the
skills are addressed reflects my ass umption that each
thinking skill supports those that follow.
17

•

2 Drawing

T
his chapter' s focus is on the basic representa
tion skills helpful to graphic thinking methods
as p resented in th e remainder of th is bo ok.
Developing freehand drawing skills is ne ces
sary to th e attainment of graphic thinking and per
ceptual skills. Some might say, "I really admire good
draw ings and th ose design er s who have a quick
han d, bu t I have accept ed the fact that I wi ll never be
that good." Bunk! It jus t is not so! Anyone can learn
to draw well . If you don't believe me, take the time to
talk to pe ople w ho dr aw very well. You w ill find that
their first draw ings w ere tentative. They probably
took every oppo rtunity to draw. With time and hard
wo rk, th ey gradually improved and never regretted
the effort th ey made.
Ther e are two importan t conditions to keep in
mi nd when trying to develop any sk ill:
1. Skill comes w ith repetition .
2. Th e surest way to practice any skil. is to en joy
what you are doing.
Because of th e heavy emphasis on rationalizati on
in formal educati on, many people mistaken ly think
that they can ma ster a skill , such as drawing, simply
by understanding concepts. Concepts are helpful, but
practice is essential.
The orchestra conductor Artie Shaw once explained
why he refused all requests by parents to audit ion their
children. He felt that the worst thing you can do to a
talented child is to tell him he has talent. The grea ts in
the music bu siness, regardless of na tural talent,
became successful through hard work and a commit
men t to their craft. They believed in themselves but
knew they would have to struggle to prove them selves
to others. Th e focus of en ergy, sense of competition,
and years of hard work are essential to becom ing a fine
musician.
The know ledge that draw ing and thi nk ing are
important to archi tect ure is not sufficient. Natural
drawing talent is not enough. To sustain the neces
sary lifetime effort of learning and perfecting grap hic
thinking, we need to find pleasure in drawing and
thinking. We must be challenged to do it better than
those architects we admire do. Morse Payne of The
Architects Collaborat ive once noted the influence of
Ralph Rapsin on many talented designers: "To watch
Ralph knoc k out one of his beautiful perspectives in
fifteen minutes was truly inspiring. It set a goal for us
that was ver y challenging.": Fortunately, th ere is still
a lot of respect w ithin the architectural profession for
high-quality draw ing. The pe rson who ca n express
hims elf both graphically and verba lly on an
impro mptu basis is hig hly · valued. When hiring,
office s oft en loo k for ability to comm unica te over
ability to be original. They know that your ability to
develop ideas with them is much more important in
the long run than the idea that you initially bring to
th em .
It is possible to be an architect w itho ut hav ing
we ll-developed graphic th inking sk ills. A barber or a
bartender can surely cut hair or serve drinks wi tho ut
being able to car ry on a conversation. But the job is a
lot easier if you enjoy talking with people, and you
will pr obably do more business. I believe that grap hic
thinking can make design more enjoya ble and mo re
effe ctive.
Four types of basic skills support graphic th ink
ing: obs ervation, percep tion , discrimina tion , and
imagination. Although these are considered to be pri
marily th inking skills, in this chapter I have tried to
show how graphic means may be used to promote
th ese sk ills and attain a fundamental integrat ion of
graphics and thinking. The sequence in which the
skills are addressed reflects my ass umption that each
thi nking skill supports th ose that follow.
17

Figure 2-2 By Lisa Kolber.
THE SKETCH NOTEBOOK
Frederick Perls hel d that, "People who look at things
without seeing them w ill experience the same defi
ciency when calling up me ntal pictures, while those
who...look at things sq ua rely and wi th recognition
w ill have an equally .alert in ternal eye." 2 Visual
imagery is critical to the creati ve designer; he must
rely on a very rich collection of visual memories. The
rich ness of these memories depen ds on a well-devel
oped and act ive visual perception. The sketch note
boo k is an excellen t way of collecting visua l images
and sha rpe ning perception, for it promotes see ing
rather than just looking. Architects who have gotte n
int o th e sketch notebook habit quick ly discover its
usefulness. All I can say is to try it; you'll like it.
A sketch notebook should be small and portable,
able to fit into a pocket so it can be carried anywhere.
It should have a durable binding and covers so it
won't come apart. Carry it w ith you at all times and
leave it next to your be d at night (some of the best
ideas com e to pe ople just before going to sleep or
right up on awakening). As the name implies, it is a
book for notes as well as for sketches and for
reminders, recipes, or anything else you can think
about. Combining verba l and graphic notes helps
unite verbal and visual thin king.
~ ,
1.1 ~;:J,,~1~ ' t? I
~ f":;~~" i4"-~);Y J ~', " .E(f V tl
~-If":/ ' ,e ~ II
- -r ' ~ ':):,. ;f1 -.L.~ "~~~ ~~" c ' / , :>" ,)
<, .~ -, -' , ' = :n'l';' _ -::t ' ,, , ,~ . ~.@J ;> ~' / '0~L:f,~s ",,--- ~1:t
~G
Figure 2-3 By Lawrence Halprin.
r'~.::. c'; / h'? _rrN N (
~

1k~}Ir~

~/".u .1
""", ' &C
6- ,(,"',)
~~~

P'1-~

~ · ~'i·l
, I
1:
Figure 2-4 By Karl Brown.
18 D rawing

Figure 2-5 By Karl Mang.
Figure 2-6 By Ronald Margolis. Old Mai n Building,
Wayne University.
::-.- -___-------. .-y
/
Figure 2-7 By Patrick D. Nall.
The Sketch Notebook 19

Figure 2-8 Spanish Steps, Rome.
OBSERVATION
The thousands of students who pass through archi
tectural schools are us ua lly told th at they shou ld
learn to sket ch freehand and , to a certain degree,
how . Rarely are they told what they shou ld sketch or
w hy. Drawing cubes and othe r still-life exercises are
an attempt to teach sketching divorced from th ink
ing. Most students find it bori ng, and it drives some
away from sketching for the rest of their lives. I pre
fer to start students with the sket ching of existing
buildings because:
1. They are drawing subjects in which they have a
basic interest and are ready to dis cuss.
2. The eye an d m ind as well as the hand ar e
involved; percep tion becomes fine-tuned, and we
begin to sort out our vis ual experiences.
3. One of the best ways to learn about architectural
design is to look closely at existin g buildi ngs and
spaces.
The clearest way to demonstrate the value of free
hand sketchi ng for developing grap hic thinking skills
is to compa re sketching wi th ph otography. Although
a cam era is often a useful or expedient tool, it lacks
many of the attributes of sketches. SKetches have the
ab ility to reveal our percept ion , th erefore giving
more importance to certain pa rts, whereas a photo
shows everything wi th equal emphas is. In the sketch
of the Spanish Steps in Rome, the focus is on the
church, ellipse, and step s as organizing elem en ts for
th e entire ext erior space. Th e significant im pact of
the flowers in the photo ha s been elimina ted in the
sketch . The abstra ction can be pushed further until
there is on ly a pattern of light and dark, or we can
focus only on certain details, suc h as lamp posts or
windows. This on e scene alone is a dict ionary of
urban design. But you do not have to wa it until you
get to Rome to get started; there are lessons all
around us. Become a prospector of ar chitectural
design; build your own collection of good ideas while
you learn to sketch. It is a lot of fun.
20 Drawing

Figure 2-9 S . r Rpanish Steps orne.
Figure 2-10 Wrn ow Detail.' d
Figure 2-9 _ :a Spanish Steps, Rorne.
Figure 2-11 Street lamp detail.
Observation 21

?trl-{4lJY~ I(YM~

{!
IJ
Figure 2-12a House drawing structure.
BUILDING A SKETCH
In his book D rawing Buildings, Richard Downer pre
sented the most effective approach to freeh and
sketching I have ever com e across . "The first an d
most importan t th ing about draw ing buildings is to
realize that what you intend to draw should interest
you as a subject.'? Nex t, it is important to select a
vantage point that best describes your subject. Now
you ar e ready to build the sketch by a three-step
process of sketching basic structure, tones, an d then
det ails. The basic structure sketch is most important.
If the parts are not shown in their proper place and
A

Figure 2-12b Tones.
corr ect propor tion s it makes no difference w hat is
drawn from then on; the sketch w ill always look
wrong. So take your time; look carefully at the sub
ject; continually compare your sketch wi th w hat you
see. Now add the tones. These represent the space
defining elements of light, shadow, and color. Again ,
look carefully at the subject. Where are the lightest
ton es; where are the darkest? The sketch is becoming
more realistic. The details are added last. At this
poin t everything is in its place, and you can really
concentrat e on the details one at a time. It is no
longer overw helming; you can relax and enjoy it.
Figure 2-13a Bowl drawing structure. Figure 2-13b Tones. Figure 2-13c Finished bowl drawing.
22 D rawing

Figure 2-12c Texture and color.
Figure 2-12d Finished house drawing.
Building a Sketch 23

IZJ D
L7k1
1
Figure 2-17
Structure Sketch
Figure 2-14
The most im port ant part of a sketch , the basic line
draw ing, is also the most difficult skill to master. It
requires a lot of practice, but I have a few suggestions
that sho uld help:
Fig ure 2-15
Figure 2-16
1. To help sha rpen th e sense of proportion need ed
for sketching, practice dr aw ing squares and then rec
tangles that are two or th ree times longer on one side
than on the other. Now try to find squares in a scene
you are sketching . (At the beginning, th is could be
don e w ith tracing pap er over a photograph.)
2. Use a cross or a fra me to get th e parts of the
sketch in th eir proper place, or maybe a promine nt
fea ture of the scene or subject can act as an organizer
for the other parts of the sketch.
3. ·Although pencil can certainly be us ed for
sketching, I prefer felt-tip or ink pens because the
lines they produce are simple and clear. If a line is in
the wrong place, it is qu ite evident. Because the lin e
cannot be eras ed, it must be redrawn to get it right.
This process of repetition and checking against the
subject develops skill. Drawings that are so light they
can be ignored or erased deny the designer the feed
back essential to his im provement.
4. To gai n more cont rol over line m aking, try
some sim ple exercises similar to our "idle moment "
doodles. Th e spirals, like those above, are drawn
from the ou tside toward the center, both clockw ise
and counterclockwise. Try to m ake them as fas t as
possible without letting the lines touch each other;
try to get the lines close to each othe r. Stra ight hatch
ing can be done in several directions , always striv ing
for consistency.
24 Dra wing

Figure 2-18
Figure 2-20
Tones
Tones can be represented with different den sities of
hatching or combinations of cross-ha tching. The lines
sho uld be parallel and have eq ual spa ces between
them . Always remember that the ma in purpose of the
cross- hatching is to obtain different levels of gray or
darkness. Use straight strokes as if you were pa inting
the surfaces with a brush . Errati c or irregular lines
draw attention to them and di stract th e eye from
more im portant things. There is no strict rule for
applying tones on a sketch, but I have some prefer
enc es that seem to work well. Horizontal ha tching is
used on horizontal surfaces, di ago na l hatch ing on
vertical surfaces. Wh en two verti cal surfaces meet,
the hatching on one is at a slig htly differen t an gle
from the hatching on the other surface.
Figure 2-19
Apply tones in a three-step process:
1 . Indicate any texture that appears in the surface,
such as the vertical boards on a barn.
2. If the texture indication does not provide the level
of darkness of th e subject , add the necessary addi
tional hatching over the entire surface.
3 . Now apply more hatching w here any shad ow s
fall. To show gradations of shadow, add a succes
sion of hatches at different angles.
The refinement of ton es in a drawing is achieved
by loo king carefully at th e subject and by getting
more control over the consistency of the lines.
Several alternative techniques for sketching in
tones are illustrated throughout this book . The one
shown at the right above is a rapid me thod using ra n
dom strokes. De signers usually develop techniques
w ith w hich they feel most comfortable.
Building a Sketch 2 5

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Figure 2-21
Figure 2-23
Figure 2-22
Details
Details are ofte n the most in terestin g or compelling
as pe ct of buildings. The window is an excellent exam
ple. Ther e, the de tails can be the result of a tr an siti on
betw een two mater ials-brick and glass-or between
two building elements-wall and opening. The wood
w indow frame, brick arch, key stone, and w indowsill
make these transitio ns po ss ib le, an d each of th ese
details tells us more about the building . On a regular
basis, I have students sketch windows, doors, or
other bu ilding elements so they gain an understand
ing and appreciation of the contribution of details to
th e qualities and functions of the building. Details
tell us so methi ng of needs and materials as well as
our in genuity in relating th em . The ske tch of the
meta l grating around the base of the tree exp lains
both the need s of the tree and the use of th e surfa ce
under the tree where people walk.
In most architectural sce nes, th ere are det ails
close to us and othe rs farther away. We can see more
of the close detail and sho uld show in the sketch suc h
things as scre w s or fas te ne rs or fin e joints and tex
tures. As details recede in the sket ch , fewer and
fewer of the pieces ar e show n, until only the outline
is visible.
26 Drawing

Figure 2-25 MOlltgomery, Alabama.
Figure 2-24 Sail Francisco. California.
Combining Observations
With practice, structure, tones, and details ca n be
effectively combined to ca pture th e com plete se nse
of a subject. Older houses of different styles ar e suit
ab le subjects for practicing and developing observa
tion skills. The y are usually readi ly accessible and
pro vide a variety of visual effect s that ca n sus ta in
your interest. Try visiting favorite houses at differ ent
times of day in orde r to view the impact of differ ent
lighting co nditions. Walk arou nd, approa ch , and
retr ea t from th e subject to capture a variety of
appearances .
Building a Sketch 27

011'0 0o
Figure 2-26a Original sketch.
DOD
Figure 2-26b Overlay sketch.
IJ
no
TRACING
Tracing existing graphic material is another way to
bu ild sketching skills. Making an overlay of you r ow n
drawings with tracing paper is an obvious but under
used device. Rath er than overwork a draw ing that is
head ed in the wrong direction, make an over lay
showing the elements that need to be corrected and
then, in anothe r overlay, ma ke a w hol e new sketch
incorporating the chan ges. You w ill learn more from
your mistakes, and the fina l sketch will be better an d
fresher. Tracing can also be do ne by laying a trans
parent sheet with a grid over a draw ing or pho to,
drawing a larger grid, and then transferring the draw
ing square by sq uare. A thi rd technique uses a slide
projector and a sm all mirror to project images of a
convenient size for tracing on your drawing table.
The large sketch on page 31 was done in this way.
No matter th e reason you thou gh t copying was
improper or illegal, forget it. Master draftsm en such
as Leonardo da Vinci copied oth er peopl e's wo rk
when th ey were learn ing to draw. No tracing is ever
th e same as th e origina l. You w ill pick out some
details and simplify other parts. Tracing forces you to
look closely at the or iginal sketc h or photo and better
un derstand the subject.
) MWJrt4~~11-¥
Figure 2-26c Final sketch.
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Figure 2-27 Projection table and projection box.
28 Dra wing

Figure 2-28a Original sketch.
Figure 2-28b Enlargement of sketch.
Figure 2-29 Tracing after Ray Evans.
Figure 2-30 Tracing after Ray Evans.
Tracing 29

~
Figure 2-31 Sketc h of Athens, Ohio. (a)
Figure 2-32 Sketch of Athens, Ohio. Figure 2-33 Sketch of Athens, Ohio.
30 Drawing

Figure 2-34 a (opposite), b (above) Plan, section, and perspective of garden-court restaurant, Salzburg, Austria.
PERCEPTION
Many architects have become m et hodical about
sketch and note taking. Gordon Cullen , the British
illus trator and urban design consult ant, had a major
influence on the use of analytica l sketches. His book
Townscape' is a wond erful collection of visual percep
tions of th e urban enviro n me nt. The sketches are
clear and comprehensive , imp ressive ev idence of
w hat can be dis covered wi th gra phic thinking. Using
pl ans , sections , and perspectives, th e sketches go
beyond th e obvious to uncover new perceptio ns .
Tones are used to iden tify major orga nizers of space.
(In the book, many of these tones are achieved
mec hanically, but th ey are easily rendered in
sketches by hatching wi th grease pe ncil or large felt
tip markers.] The verba l catego rization of urban ph e
nomena through shor t titles helps to fix the visual
perceptions in our memories; verbal and graphic
communications are working together. And these are
not complicated sketches; they are within the poten
tial of most designers, as show n in the sketches oppo
site, w hich apply Cullen's techniques to the analysis
of a small midwestern town.
As John Gundelfinger puts it:
A sketchbook should be a personal diary of what
interests you and not a collection of finished draw
ings compiled to impress with weight and numb er. ..a
finished on-the-spot drawing...shouldn't be the rea
son you go out, for the objective is drawing and not
the drawing. I often learn more from drawings that
don't work out, studying the unsuccessful attempts tc
see where and why I went off ..can learn more than
from a drawing where everything fell into place .
The drawings that succeed do so in some measure
because of the failures I've learned from preceding it,
and so certain pitfalls were unconsciously ignored
while drawing.S
Perception 3 1

Figure 2-35 Waterfront, Mobile, Alabama.
Each subject may reveal new ways of seeing if we
remain open to its special characteristics. It may be
the redundancy of forms or a pattern of shadows; it
may be an aware ness of the sp ecial set of elements
and circums tances that produ ces a particularly inter
esting visual experience. A sketch of the interior of a
cathedral can uncover th e exciting play of scale and
mat erials. Th e ac t of dr awing can dramatically
heighten your visu al sensitivity.
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Figure 2-36 Salzburg, Austria.
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Figure 2-37 Mobile, Alabama.
32 Drawing

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Figure 2-38 By Todd Calson. Westminster Cathedral.
Figure 2-39 Ohio University Quad, Athens, Ohio.
Perception 3 3

Figure 2-40 Cartoon style sketch, after Rowland Wilson. Figure 2-42 After Saul Steinberg.
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Figure 2-43 AfterSaul Steinberg.
DISCRIMINATION
Cartoons ar e an im portant source of sketching ideas.
My favo rite sources are The N ew Yorker and Punch
magazines, but there are many other sources.
Cartooni sts convey a conv inc ing sense of reality with
an incredible economy of mean s. Simple con tou r
lin es suggest detail inform ati on w hile con centra ting
on ove rall shapes. Michael Folkes describes some of
the discipline of cartoon drawings:
...simplicity refers to the need to ma ke the clearest
possible sta tement.... Avoid all unnecessary detail.
Figure 2-41 After Saul Steinberg.
Ma ke the focal point of your pictu re stand ali t.
Refrain from filling every corne r with objects or
shading.... Train your hand and eye to put down on
paper rapidly recogniza ble situations: in the fewest
possible strokes. One significant detail is worth far
more than an uncertain clu tter of lines that don 't
really describe anything. Make dozens of sma ll pic
tures...drawing directly in pen and ink so that the
pen becomes a natural drawing instrument and not
something that can only be used to wor]: pain fully
over carefully prepared pencil lines.(,
The cartoon is selective or discriminating; it he lps
you seek out th e essence of an experience.
34 Drawing

Figure 2-44 Sketch extending a view derived from
the painting, Giovanni Arnofini and His Bride, by
Jan Van Eyck.
Figure 2-45 Drawing from imagination.
IMAGINATION
To move from graphics in suppo rt of observa tio n
toward gra phic thinking that supports designing, you
must develop and stre tch imagin ati on . Her e are so me
simple exercises to start:
1. Find a drawing, photograph, or painting of a room
th at shows a part of a space. On a large sh eet of
pap er, draw the scene depicted and th en extend
th e drawing beyond its or igin al frame to sho w
Figure 2-46 Drawing from imagination.
those pa rts of the roo m accessibl e only throu gh
your imagination.
2 . Draw a se t of objects and then draw w hat you
believe to be the view from the backside.
3. Sket ch a sim ple object su ch as a cube w ith dis
tinc tive mar kin gs. The n imagine that you are cut
ting the object and moving the parts. Draw the
differen t new configurations.
Imagination 35

Visual-Mental Games
An en tertaining way to improve ha nd- eye- mind
coordination and promote an ability to visualize is to
play some simple games.
1. Show a few people four or five cutouts of sim
ple shapes arranged on a piece of paper (above, left).
Out of view of the ot hers, one person moves th e
cutouts while verbally describing the move. The oth
ers attempt to draw the new ar ra nge me nt from the
description. Th is is repeated a few times to see who
can keep track of the position of the shapes. After
master ing th is exercise, have the persons drawing try
to form a mental picture of each new arrangement
and then try to draw only the final arran gement. In a
second version of this game, an object is substitu ted
for the cut outs, an d it is manipulate d, opened , or
taken apart.
2 . Form a circl e wi th a small group. Each person
makes a simple sketch and passes it to his righ t.
36 Draw ing
Everyone tries to copy the sketch he has received and
in turn passes th e copy to th e right. This continues
unti l the fin al copy is passed to the creator of the orig
inal sketch. Then all sketches are arrange d on a wall
or table in the order they were made. This game illus
trates the distinctiveness of individual visual percep
tion (above, center).
3. Doodles, using an architectural or de sign
theme, are another form of puzzle. He re, th e objec
tive is to provide just enough clues so the subject is
obvious once the title is given (above, right) .
There are many visual puzzles that exercise our
visual perception. Try some of those show n opposite;
look for more puzzles, or invent some of your ow n. In
the sketches opposite, an arbitrary diagram is given
and the cha llenge is to use it as a parti for different
bu ildings by seeing it as standing for a section or plan
view for starters.

Figure 2-50 Visual puzzles.
Figure 2-51 ExpLoring design based on a parti diagram.
Imagination 37

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3 ( nventions

Represent: Call up by description or portrayal or
imagination, figure, place, likeness of before mind or
senses, serve or be meant as likeness of ..stand for,
be specimen 0(, fill place 0(, be subs titute [or:
hroughout history, representation and design
have been closely linked. The act of design ing
grew directly out of man's desire to see w ha t
could or would be achieved before investing
too much time, energy, or money. To create a clay pot
meant simply working directly with your hands until
the desired result was achieved. But making a gold
pot required expensive material, m uc h preparation,
time, and energy. A representation, a design drawing,
of the gold bowl was necessary befor e starting th e
project. Design became an important part of architec
tural projects simply because of th eir scale.
Representing the imagined building permitted not
only a view of the final result but the planning for
labor and materials to assure completion of the projec t.
The representational capacity of sketches is lim
ited. We must recognize that even wi th the most
sophisticated techniques drawings are not a full sub
stitute for the ac tual experience of an arch itec tural
env ironment. On the other hand, the capac ity of
sketches as thinking tools extends well beyond what
is actually con tained in the sketches. Drawings, as
representations, should be seen as extensions of the
persorus] who uses them to aid in thinking. As Rudo lf
Arnheim says:
The world of images does not simply imprint itself
upon a faithfully sensitive organ. Rathel; in looking
at an object, we reach out for it. With an invisible
finger we move through space around us, go out to
distant places where things are foun d, touch them,
catch them, scan their surfaces, trace their borders,
explore their texture. It is an eminently active occu
potion.'
I find a great variation in the degree to which
architects rely on drawings to visua lize designs. One
probable explanation for this is experience in vis ua l
izing and w ith the building of these designs. For
example, when architecture students look at a plan
view of a room, they likely see just an abstract dia
gram, but some experienced architects can visua lize a
perspective view of the same room without having to
draw it.
Figure 3-2
Figure 3-3
Some basic types of re prese ntation sketc hes,
which I feel arch itects should be able to understand,
are discussed in th is ch apter. I do not intend to pres
ent a comprehensive explanation of the construction
of basic drawing conventions . Th er e are already sev
eral good books on that subject. Rather, the emphasis
will be on freehand techniques without th e use of tri
angles, scales, and st raightedges, allowing for rapid
representation.
39

',,"/
Figure 3-4 Site plan.
Figure 3-6 Partial elevation.
There ar e a great number of th ings we can repre
sen t ab out a space or a building and many ways to
represent them. Th e sketched subjects can range in
scale from a building and its surrounding property to
a window or a light sw itch. We might be interested in
how it looks or how it works or how to put it
togeth er; we may be searching for clarity or charac
ter. Variations in drawings ra nge from the concrete to
the abs tract, an d the convention s include sec tion or
cut, eleva tio n, perspective, axonometric, isometric,
and projections. Media, technique, an d style acco unt
for many of the other variations. Ma ny of these varia
tions are covered in later chapters.
Figure 3-5 Axonometric.
Figure 3-7 Detail section.
Th e elementary for ms of representation discussed
at this point are :
1. Comprehensive views- To st udy design s as com
plete systems , we must have models that repre
sent the whole from some viewpoint.
2. Concrete images- Dealing with the m ost direct
experience. Abstraction is covere d in Chapter 4.
3. Perceptual focus- Trying to involve the viewe r in
the expe rien ce signified by the drawing.
4. Freehand sketches-Decision-m akin g in de sign
should include the consi deration of many altern a
tives. Representation of altern atives is encouraged
by th e speed of freehand ske tching, w hereas the
tediou sn ess of "construc ted " hard-line draw ings
discourages it.
40 Conventions

BUILDINGA PERSPECTIVE.
Rdure
91ane
l1otrzon L U1l
Figure 3-8a Setting the picture plane Figure 3-8b Starting grids. Figure 3-8c Setting cross-grids.
and viewpoint.
Figure 3-9a Setting the pict ure plane and Figure 3-9b Setting one grid, plan view. Figure 3-9c Setting the cross-grids,
viewpoint, plan view. plan view.
PERSPECTIVE
Perspective sketches have an eq ual standing with
plan drawings, the starting poi nt of most design edu
cation. One-point perspective is the easiest and there
fore, I feel, th e most useful of pe rspect ive
convent ions. I have found th e follow ing th re e-step
method to be most successful:
1. Indicate the picture plane in bot h elevation and
plan; it is usually a wall or another feature th at
defines the far limits of th e immediate space to be
viewed. Loca te the point from which the space is to
be viewed, or viewpoint (VP.). Vertically, this point is
usually about 5.5 feet from the bottom of the picture
plane. Horizontally, it can be placed just about any
w here in the space with the un der standing that parts
of the sp ace outside a 50-degree cone of vision in
front of the viewer tend to be distorted in the per
spective. The horizontal line draw n through th e V P.
is called th e horizon line.
2 . Establish a grid on the floor of the space. Draw
th e square grid in plan and co unt the number of
spaces the viewer is away from the pi cture plane.
Then, in th e perspective , loca te the diago na l vanish
ing point (D.V P.) on the hori zon line at the same dis
tance from the viewpo int. Draw floor grid lines in the
perspective in one direction coming from the view
point; draw a diagonal line from the diagona l vanish
ing point through the bottom corner of the picture
plane an d across the space. Where the diago nal inter
sects the floor grid lines running in the on e direction,
horizontal lines can be draw n to show the other
direction of the floor grid.
3 . Indicate the struc ture of the basic elements of
the space. Continu e the grid on the walls and ceiling
(if app ropriate). Using th e grids as quick refer ence,
place vertical plan es an d openings as we ll as signifi
cant divisions of the planes.
Perspective 41

Figure 3-10a Definition of space.
Sketching straight lines freeh and is an important
skill to ma ster for all types of gra phic thinking, an d
practice makes perfect. Once you begin to rely on a
straighted ge, the work slows dow n. Start by con cen
trat ing on w here the line begin s an d end s ra ther than
on the line itself. Place a dot at the beginning and a
dot w here the line should end. As yo u repeat this
exe rcise, let the pen drag ac ross the pap er betw een
the two dots. This sounds pret ty elementa ry, but it is
surprising how ma ny people have never bothered to
learn how to sketch a straight line.
With th e ba sic per sp ec tive and plan com pleted
the values, or tones, ca n now be ad ded. The actual
col or of objects or p lanes, shade, or sha dow s can
cause differences in values; indicating these changing
values shows the interaction of light w ith the space,
providing spa tial definition. Conve nt ions for casting
shadows are presen ted w hen plan draw ings are dis
cu ssed. For now, it is en ough to note that shadow s ar e
firs t cast in plan and the n add ed to the perspective,
4 2 Conventions
using th e square grid as a reference. Sha de appea rs
on objects on the side opposite to the sun or othe r
source of light w here no direct light falls; shaded sur
faces are gene rally lighter in tone tl;an shadows. As
in sketching exis ting buildings, I prefer to use pa ralle l
hatch lines to show tones (see Building a Sketch in
Chapter 2).
Finally, de tai ls and objects can be added. People
ar e most important because they establi sh the sca le
of the space and involve th e viewer throug h identifi
ca tion w ith these sketched figur es. Sim plicity, realis
tic proportion s, and a sense of movement are basic to
good human figures such as these. The squ are grids
help in coordi na tin g the p lacement of human figures
and other objects in plan and pe rspective . Be sure to
place people and objects w he re they would really be;
the pur pose of th e sketch is to understand the space,
not to camo uflage it.

Figure 3-11 Casting shadows in plan.
Figure 3-10b Adding tones and shadows.
Figure 3-12 Practice drawing straight
lines.
Figure 3-13 Practice drawing people.
Figure 3-10c Completing details.
Perspective 43

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-
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:s: /
Figure 3-14 Modification of a one-point perspective.
QUALITATIVEREPRESENTATION
At this point we are not interested in th e qualities of
dr awing expressi on , such as style or tech niques; this
is covered in Ch apter 5. By qualitative represen ta
tion, I mean the representation of the qualities of a
space. In his book Design Drawing Willia m Lockard
ma kes a very convi ncing arg umen t for the supe riority
of perspectives as rep resent ationa l draw ings.
"Perspectives are more qualitat ive than quantitative.
The experiential qualities of an enviro nmen t or
object can be perceived direct ly fro m a per sp ec
tive...Th e qualities of th e space/time/light continuum
are much better represented and understood in per
spective (than by othe r conventions)." Perspectives3
have the advantage of showing the relationship of all
the elemen ts of a space in a way most similar to how
we would experience it when built. Alt hough it is
true that bu ildings are not expe rienced only through
perspectives, it is the best way of show ing a dire ct
visual experience of a specific space.
Lockard 's chapter on representation has probably
the best explana tion of th e use of perspec tive
sketche s for representat ion . Lockard illustrates a per
spective view that is close to one-point perspective; it
involv es an imaginary second perspect ive po int
added at som e dis tance from the ske tch (see Figur e 3
15). Lines running the wi dt h of the one-po int per
4 4 Conventions
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---- /
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-- ./
I)b
----
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Figure 3-15 Organization of a modified perspective. after
Lockard.
spective , parallel with the horizon line, are now
slightly slanted in the direction of the imaginary sec
ond poi nt. To make th e transition fro m one -point per
spective, the top and bottom lines of the picture plane
can be given a slight slan t an d a new plane is estab
lished; by drawing a new diagonal, the new diagonal
vanishing point can be set. A grid can also be applied
to this type of perspective to help in placing objects in
the spa ce.
To rep resent th e qua lities of an imagined space,
we have to know something about the qua lit ies of
sp aces. Though th is seems obvious, it is often
ignored. As architect s, we have to look for w hat gives
spaces th eir special charac ter, the different kinds of
ligh t, color, texture, pat tern , or shapes possibl e and
how they are combined. Continual sket ching in a
sketch notebook is one sure way of learn ing about the
qualities of spaces. When th is knowled ge is ap plied
to the represen tative pe rspective, we must remember
to con vey the three-dimensional experience of th e
sp ace onto a two-dimensional surface, the paper. To
do this, we need to illustrate the effect s of depth or
distance upon th os e things th at give th e sp ace its
qualities. With an increase in depth, light seems to
produ ce fewer gradat ion s of tone ; det ail is less evi
dent; text ure and co lor are less vivid; outlines or
edges are less sharp . Dep th can also be con veyed
through overlap of object or contou r.

Figure 3-16a Setup of sketch perspective based on Lockard method.
Figure 3-16b Completed sketch perspective.
Qualitative Representation 45

~
ii
Figure 3-17 Parallel projections.
PARALLEL PROJECTIONS
Currently in common use, the axono me tric sketch is
an important alte rnative to the perspective, plan, and
section. The axonometri c is simply a projection from
a plan or section in which all parallel lines in the
space are show n as parallel; this is in contra st to a
persp ective where parallel lines are shown as exte nd
ing from a single point. The axonometric technique is
traditio nal in Chine se draw ings. Instead of placin g
the viewer at a single point from which to view the
scene, it gives the viewer the feel ing of being every
where in front of the scene. The axonometric has the
addition al advanta ge of represent ing th ree-dimen
sional spa ce while re taining the "true" dimensions of
a plan and section.
This last ch aracteristic makes an axonome tric
easy to draw because all th ree dimensions are shown
at the same scale. Axono metric projections forward
or bac kward from plan s or sections are convention
ally ma de at an gles of 30, 45, or 60 degrees, bu t in a
sketch the exact angle is no t imp ortant as lon g as the
projected lines remain parallel.
46 Conventions

1
r
Figure 3-18 Section.
VERTICAL SECTION
A vertical cut through a space is ca lled a section.
What was said about the plan sketch also ap plies to
the section sketch, except for the casting of shadows.
With sec tions, we can show depth of space by apply
ing the one -point perspective conventions explained
earlier. Imagine you are looking at a cut model of the
space; the point at which you look directly into the
model is where the viewpoint (V. P.) wi ll be placed.
The viewpoint is used to project the perspective
be hind the section.
Human figures are also important for section
ske tches. Many designers ske tch in view lines for the
people; this seems to make it easier to imagine being
in the space and gives some se nse of w hat can be
seen from a particular position in the space. Shadows
can be indicated to see the effect of sunlight within
the space.
Vertical Section 47

~ ~
~ , ..

Figure 3-19 Plan.
PLAN SECTION
Abstract plan diagrams such as th e one ab ove have
man y uses in the ea rly concep tual stages of design.
Th is is covered in depth in Ch apter 4. However,
many architecture stud~nts make the mistake of try
ing to use th ese plan diagrams to rep resent the more
concrete decisions about the format ion of space. Plan
sketches of design ed sp aces must show w hat is
enclosed and what is no t, including scale, height, pat
tern, and detail. A plan is basically a horizontal cut or
section th rough th e spa ce. Things that are cut , su ch
as walls or columns, are outlined in a heavy line
weight. Things that can be seen below the pl ace
w here the plan was cut are ind icated in a lighter line
weight. Things such as a skylight that cannot be seen
because they are above the level of the cut can be
shown with a heavy dashed line if desired.
The first stage of a rep resent ativ e pla n is the
heavy outlining of walls clearl y show ing openings. In
th e second stage, doo rs, window s, fu rn iture, and
other details are added . The third- stage sketc h
48 Conventions
inc ludes sha dows to sho w th e re lative he igh ts of
plane s and objects. The pre vail ing co nvention for
shadows casts them on a 45-de gee angle, up and to
the right. Th e shadows need only be as long as neces
sary to clearly show the relat ive heights of the furn i
ture, walls, etc. Finally, color, texture, or pattern can
be added to explain further the character of the
space.
OTHER REPRESENTATIONS
A variety of sk etche s ba sed on th e conventions of
persp ective, pl an , section , and axonometric are
shown on the next page. By means of sketches, we
can cu t open, peel ba ck, p ull apart, re construct, or
make concre te objects transparent to see how they
are arranged or con structed . Th ese are jus t a few of
the possible extensions of representation . As we use
sketches to visu alize design s, we sho uld always be
ready to invent new too ls as needed.

- -- -
Figure 3-20 Transparent sketch.
Figure 3-21 By Thomas Truax. Structural systems illustrations,
Boston City Hall, Kallman, McKinnell & Knowles, architects.
~
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Figure 3-22 Cut-away view, the Simon House, Barbara and Julian Figure 3-23 "Explodarnetric" drawing of a barn.
Neski, architects.
Other Representations 49

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Figure 3-24 By Helmut Jacoby. Boston Government Service
Center, Paul Rudolph, coordinating architects.
---1 11
Figure 3-25 By Helmut Jacoby. Ford Foundation headquarters,
Dinkerloo and Roche, architects.
SKETCH TECHNIQUE
Many architects have developed th eir ow n sketching
styles in an attemp t to quickly represent structure,
tones, and detail with a minim um of effor t. An espe
cia lly effective tech nique is that of Helmut Jacoby, an
architectural delineator of int ern ational reputat ion."
The quick prelimin ary studies he uses to plan th e
final renderings provide remark able clarity of spa tial
definition wi th an economy of means. Not ice how,
with a range of tight an d loose squiggly lines, he can
define surfaces and th e rapid way fha t he suggests
people, trees, textur es, and ot her details. The under
lying structur e of the sketch is usually quite simple,
w ith w hi te areas used to help defin e space an d
objects. Jacoby is very aware of variat ions in tone and
the effe cts of sha de and shadow with respect to the
sur round ing trees as well as the building .
Michael Ge bhardt sketches w ith an emphasis on
tones and textur es, defining spa ce more through con
trasts than line work. With a loopi ng stroke, he is
abl e to establish a consistency th at pu lls the drawing
toget her and directs atten tion to the su bject rat her
th an the media. In esta blishing your own style, be
sure to examine closely the work of others that you
admire ; th ere is no need to start fro m scratch. Also
keep in mind th at the objective in sket ching is speed
and ease.
50 Conventions

Figure 3-26 By Brian Lee. Automatic drawing done without
looking at the paper. It encourages fluidity of line and
naturalness of expression.
Figure 3-27 By Michael F. Gebhardt. Johns-Manville World
Headquarters, The Architects Collaborative.
Sketch Technique 5 1

. ..I;/
1/
/ -:
Figure 3-28 By Bret Dodd.
Design ing depends heavily upon representation;
to avoid disappointment later, th e designer wa nts to
see the physica l effects of his dec isions. It is
inevitable that a student w ill tell me that he is waiting
unt il he has decided w ha t to do before he draws it
up. This is backward. In fact, he canno t decide what
to do until he has drawn it. N ine times out of ten inde
cisiveness is the result otiack of evidence. Furthermore,
a decision implies a choice; recognizing that th ere is
more than one possible design soluti on, it makes no
sense w hatsoever to try to de termine if one isolated
solution is good . In stead, the question should be
w hether this is the best of the know n alternatives. To
answe r this question, we must also be ab le to see the
other designs. The graphic thinking approach empha
sizes sketches tha t feed thinking and thoughts tha t
feed sketches; one is continua lly informing the other.
For the begin ni ng design er, thes e po ints can not be
ove remphasized .
There is no way to avoid the intense, compr ehen
sive job of representation or modeling in design. The
only cho ice left is whether to mak e the job eas ier
throughout a professional career by becom ing a com
pe tent illu strator now.
Having sa id tha t, I would add the warning th at
drawing and thinki ng must be always open to
growth. Cliches in drawing lead to cliches in think
ing. As John Gundelfinger says:
52 Conventions
, A
/
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1 never k now what a drawing will look like until it is
finished. Once you do, that's security, and security is
something we can all do without in a drawing. It
comes from working in a particular way or style that
enables you to control any subjec t or situation you
encounter, and once you're in control, you stop
learning The nervousne ss and anxiety that precede a
drawing are importa nt to the end result.'
Architects who have been able to find adventure
and excitement in drawing will readily attend to the
grea t boost it gives to their design' work and their
thinking.
Fina lly, I want to str ess tw o of my prejudices
regarding representative draw ing. First, freeh and
ab ility is vital for effective use of representat ion in
architec tural design. You must be ab le to turn over
ideas rapidly; to do this requires th e spo n taneous
graphic display that rapid sketc hing provides.
Second, attention should be paid to making the
sketches faithfull y re present design ideas. Avoid
ad ding things to a draw ing simply to improve the
ap pea ra nce of the drawing. Changes should refle ct
conscious changes in the design . Kirby Lockard cau
tions, "Remember, the best , most direct and honest
persu asion for a design 's ac cep tance shou ld be th e
design itself , and all successful persuasion sho uld be
based on compete nt and honest representations of
the design.:"

Figure 3-29 Design development sketches.
Sketch Technique 53

•

4 Abstraction

The design process can be thought of as a series of
transformations going from uncertainty towa rds
information. The successive stages of the process are
usually registered by some kind of graphic model. In
the final stages of the design process, designers use
highly form alized graphic languages such. as those
provided by descriptive geometry. But this type of
representation is hardly suitable for the first stages,
when designers lise quick ske tches and diagrams...It
has been accepted for years that because of the high
level of abstraction of the ideas which are handled at
the beginning of the design process, they must be
expressed necessarily by means of a rath er ambigu
ous, loose graphic language-a private language
which no one can properly understand except the
designer himself ..the high level of abstraction of the
information which is handled must not prevent us
from using a clearly defined graphic language. Such
a language would register the information exactly at
the level of abstraction it has, and it would facilitate
communication and cooperation among designe rs.I
-JUAN PABLO BONTA
M
y ow n version of a graphic language is
based on experience with students in th e
design studi o and research in de sign
process communication s. It is presented
her e because I am convinced that a clearly define d
graphic language is important both to design th ink ing
and to communication between designers.
As Robert McKim pointed out, "A language con
sists of a set of rules by w hich sym bols can be related
to represent larger meanings." 2 The di fferenc e
between verbal and graphic languages is both in the
symbols used and in the ways in w hich th e symbols
are re lated. The symbols for verbal languages are
largely rest ricted to words, whereas graphic lan
guages incl ude images, signs, numbers , and words.
Much more significant, verbal language is sequen
tial- it has a beginning, a middle, and an end.
Graphic language is simultaneous-all symbols and
their rel ation sh ips are considered at th e same time.
The simultaneity and complex interrelationship of
reali ty acc ounts for the special strength of graphic
language in addressing complex problems .
Yl1lZlA ¥waw~ ]V1Wff//A
:1
'Ii?l12tZ~
o
Figure 4-2
55

Figure 4-3a Sentence diagram.
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Figure 4-3b Graphic diagram.
GRAMMAR
The graphic language pr oposed here has gra mma tical
ru les comparab le to thos e of verbal language. The dia
gram of the sentence (Figure 4-3a) shows three basic
parts: nouns, ver bs, and modifiers such as adjectives,
ad verbs, and p hrases. Nouns represent identities ,
verbs establish re lationships between nouns, and the
modifiers qualify or quantify the identities or the rela
tionships between identities. In the graphic diagram
(Figure 4-3b), identities are shown as circles, relation
ships are show n as lines, an d modifiers are show n by
changes in the cir cles or lines (heavier lines ind icate
more important relation ships and tones indicat ing dif
ferences in iden tities). In th e sen tence diagram , the
verb shows a relationship that the subject has to the
object: the dog ca ught the bo ne. The lin e in th e
graphic diagram is bi-directiona l; it says that the livin g
room is connected to the kitchen and that the kitchen
is connected to the living room.
Thus the graphic diagram contains many sen
tences as:
1. Th e very important living room has a minor rela
tionship to th e garage (Figure 4-3c).
2. The dining room must be connected to th e special
spaces, the kitchen and the deck (Figur e 4-3d).
3. The fut ure guesthouse will be related to the entry
and indirectly to the pool (Figure 4-3e).
56 Abstraction
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(c)
(d)
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Figure 4-3c, d. e Graphic "sentences."
The re are ot her ways of draw ing "graphic se n
tences" ; three alternatives ar e show n here:
1. Position- An implied grid is used to establish rela
tionships between identit ies; th e resulting orde r
somet imes makes the di agram easier to read
(Figur e 4-4a).
2. Proximity- The degree or intensity of th e relation
sh ips of ide ntities is indicated by the re lative dis
tances between them. A significant increase in
distanc e can imply that no relatio nship exists.
This typ e of diagram has more flexibility than the
preceding type (Figure 4-4b).
3. Similarity-Identities are grouped by com mon
characteristics such as color or shape (Figure 4-4c ).
Th ese alternatives may also be combine d to form
other grammatical var iat ions (Figure 4-4d), but care
should be taken to retain consistency. To communi
cate clearly, the gra mmatical rules shoul d be immedi
ately evident. According to Jerome Bruner, "The bind
ing fact of men tal life in child and adu lt alike is that
there is a limi ted capacity for proces sing informa
tion - our span , as it is called , ca n comprise six or
seven unrelated items simultaneously. Go beyond
that and there is overload , confusion , forge tting ."
One of the reasons for adopting some basic grammat
ical rules in graphic diagrams is to avoid confusion by
reducing the number of variables that have to be han
dled at on e tim e.

- -- -- ---- --
--
Building a diagram.
,--------,
Figure 4-4a Structuring a graphic
"sentence" by position.
,,
Figure 4-5a Basic identities and Figure 4-5b Reduction to simple
relationships. ordering structure.
,...-------,
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Figure 4-4b By proximity.
Figure 4-5c Second level of Figure 4-5d Tag-ons.
information.
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Figure 4-4c By similarity. .
I
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i

Figure 4-5e Segmenting.
... r-"
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I,
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,
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One of the most useful qualities of graphic com
munication is that information can be tra nsmitted
and received on several leve ls simultaneously. Artists
rec ognized this long ago. Successfu l paintings us ually
appeal to the viewer as ove rall compositions, render
ings of de tail, and tech nique with media, just to name
a few of the levels. These levels of communication
can also be used to good advantage in a graphic dia
gram. The ba sic process for build ing a diagram
(show n above) is as follows: '
1. Try to illustrat e the basic identities and their rela
tionships in a ro ugh diagram.
2. Reduce th e diagram to its simplest structure by
applying ru les of graphic grammar.l ......- , 3. Modify th e diagram to indicate a second level of
information , using tones or heavy lines.
4. Add other levels of information as tags attached to
the basic diagram.
5. If the diagram becomes too complica ted, break it
into segments by grouping or placing a boundary
Figure 4-4d Combination of "sentence" structures, arou nd identities.
Grammar 57

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mFigure 4-6 Graphic grammar conventions.
ALternate Grammars
Th e basic graphic grammar discussed so far is mo st
commonly expresse d in what ar e known as bubble
diagrams. It is proba bly the most broad-based, ver sa
tile grammar. Ot her conven tions may qualify as
grammars, or rules for relating graphic elements so as
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to co mmunica te. Two of the more prominent gram
mars ar c th e netw ork and th e matrix. The ba sis for
th e gra m mar of networks is time or sequence.
Although it is normall y assumed th at th e se que nce
proceeds from left to right or top to bottom, arr ows
are often used to clarify the order or subtleti es of th e
se que nce. The most familiar type of network uses
58 Abstraction

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