Sketching London

Having started architecture school with a background in gestural drawing and figurative painting, my first semester quickly became one slightly absurd (but necessary) exercise in "issues of representation."

For my first project I chose to combat tradition by drawing 1/4" sections that spanned the 25 feet of our studio pin-up space. Later on I created an installation out of wood, canvas, and oil paint that I later imbued with "meaning" and "metaphor."

Since then, using digital tools has been a means to what seems like every end. With the introduction of graphic programs followed by CAD and its 3d modeling family, my hand was replaced by vector images, my voice replaced by loud text in a carefully selected font, and my medium replaced by the mercy of "Luigi," a large-format plotter at SU with a love for blues, greens, and cropping images in the wrong place.

Therefore, when asked to create a sketchbook for my Survey of British Architecture course in London, I was more than enthused to once again channel the kineticism only a momentary hand-drawn sketch can encapsulate.

To me, a "good" sketch is often something that quickly embodies multiple layers of information and insight. Rather than create a pristine, computer-like rendering of a place, why not create a page layered with information necessary to convey a moment he/she might continue to learn from?

This sentiment has been in the back of my mind as I have traveled near, far, and farther with my Muji sketchbook and bag of pens, pastels, and pencils, not to mention a sense of fun and a willingness to explore various media.