the camera lens, particularly the atmospheric effects of
natural light found in much contemporary architecture.
How light changes the quality of rugged modern materials
such as concrete or cast glass, and how this alters the
perception of interior space, are subjects that photo-
graphic images can reveal more readily than line in the
sketchbook. Similarly the analysis of light and shade,
particularly the patterns of shadows, lends itself to lens-
based investigation. However, when the camera is used
in this fashion it is often advantageous to supplement the
photographic images with sketched notes – the two
mediums being used in a complementary way, taking
advantage of the graphic properties of each. Buildings
such as the Jewish Memorial Museum in Berlin by Daniel
Libeskind lend themselves to combining lens and
traditional drawing techniques.
Used with discrimination, photography can encourage
the type of critical observation required of designers. The
lens, whether in the eye or the camera, is the tool that
communicates the properties of the visual world. The lens
is both the medium of visual communication and the
instrument that models light and form. In this regard how
the lens is employed influences how the designer thinks.
The raw material of sight is communication – what the
lens and sketchbook help to develop is visual judgement,
which in turn is the source of a personal style of drawing
and architectural form making. As such the photographic
lens can help reveal truths in architecture, particularly in
areas like the modelling of light, which can then be
employed in design.10.1a and b
These photographs by Susan Fahy of the Jewish Memorial Museum in Berlin capture the
atmospheric effects of light and space sought by its architect Daniel Libeskind. (Susan Fahy)Drawing and photography 81