Understanding Architecture Through Drawing

representation or with the beautiful drawing whose roots
extend back to the Ecole des Beaux Arts and the Royal
Academy but with the use of drawing as a creative design
tool. After all, most architectural schools in the UK still
retain a curriculum based, at least in the early years,
around the discipline of drawing. In fact, skill in drawing is
a key element of the RIBA validation process and is
strongly linked in terms of ARB prescription to that of
competency in design. The key word used is that of
‘communication’ – the ability to represent ideas
graphically to oneself and others. All the architects
interviewed in the next chapter afforded supremacy to
the drawing as the main design generator and as a skill
they expect in young graduates.

Five types of architectural drawing can be identified –

the initial diagram, the sketch design, technical and

preparatory details, site and other context studies, and

the definitive drawing. The first consists of mere lines and

fragmentary sketches often more akin to a notebook, the

second is concerned with the initial physical form often

with variations explored, the third is analytical and

technical, the fourth consists of records and analysis of

the site or questions posed by the brief, the fifth is a

representation of the architectural concept itself using

conventions such as plans, sections and perspective

views. The latter allows the question posed by the brief to

be tested against visual and practical criteria. These tools

allowed Michael Graves to posit the view that ‘without

234 Understanding architecture through drawing