One lesson to be drawn from this exploration is
the need to allow perimeter functions to influence
the design and layout of the square. A circulating system
of roads prevents the peripheral traffic from spreading
into the centre, leaving the space free for, and enriched
by, social interaction. Those who design public
buildings and railway stations have a responsibility to
provide related urban space for this essential human
need. It is a daunting task to try to draw a busy square,
but to demonstrate the relationship between physical
form and civilised values through the carefully drawn
sketch is useful, even if the drawing itself is a failure
artistically.
Since squares are generally enclosed on all sides, the
artist should employ shade and shadow to create the
impression of spatial containment. You can use your
imagination when portraying the direction of light in order
to express the quality of the square in the most
favourable way. A deep shadow to left or right allows
figures, statues or trees to be set against it, thereby
standing out and creating a real feeling of occupying the
space. Shading should not generally be drawn upon the
focal building – the intention is to direct the eye towards it
by masking out surrounding buildings. The focal building
(say, a theatre or church) can have broken shadow or
shade beneath lintels and cornices, but the principal
structure in the square is best bathed in sunshine (even if
this is not present in reality) and framed by other buildings
and trees in shadow.
Sometimes a mixture of wash or Conté crayon and
fine line are the best materials to delineate such
spaces. The wash or crayon depicts the shadows, while
the line work can be employed for portraying decorative
or principal elements. With complex urban spaces it pays
to simplify the subject as far as possible, and to build up
the sketch gradually, aiming to stop before the subject
becomes overworked.
As squares are one of the chief attractions of towns, it
is worth spending more time in them than elsewhere.
The culture of cities often resides in the squares – a
culture not just of architecture but of people and public
functions. Lesser squares and domestic spaces are also
valuable and provide important social centres for smaller
districts. These secondary spaces may be a useful
starting point for those intent upon understanding urban
design, as drawing skills can be learnt in them unimpeded
by the bustle or embarrassment that can arise in more
central locations. For the lessons provided by urban
spaces – those of entry, containment and perimeter
activity – are to be gained equally well in small squares as
in large ones.
These lesser squares show that a hierarchy of urban
spaces exists in most towns. The civic square is a truly
public space, while domestic squares set back from the
street edge are more intimate in character, though often
different again from semi-private squares landlocked
within the middle of a city block. Hence the different
types of enclosed urban spaces have distinctive qualities
that relate to their levels of privacy and need for security.
A design sketch should communicate some of these
differences in character, as in the proposal for a new
university campus in Dublin by Metropolitan Workshop
Architects.Towns, townscapes and squares 99