Where it all begins - Concept sketches of architects

"The sketch is the most simplified way to tell a building, in its simplicity far better than words."

The concept sketch is what bridges the conceptual thinking and design in the making.

The first phase of architectural process is the conceptualisation of the design and a good concept sketch provides a powerful means of communication for the architect to translate his ideas to his clients. 

Let's take a look at some concept sketches and of some architects and compare them to the actual building!

Steven Holl

Steven Holl is known for his distinct watercolour sketches that he uses so successfully to visualise volumes, forms and light.  

Sketch of Knut Hamson Hamaröy Center , Norway

Steven Holl's Knut Hamson Hamaröy Center , Norway

Dominique Perrault

Most of Perrault's sketches are drawn with the hasty strokes of a black pen to capture the idea in its most basic form. In some sketches, colour is used to show contrasting material effects.

Sketch of EWHA Womans University, Séoul, Korea

EWHA Womans University, Séoul, Korea

Louis Kahn

According to Louis Kahn, 

"Form precedes Design. Form is “what.” Design is “how.” . . . Design gives the elements their shape, taking them from their existence in the mind to their tangible presence. . . . In archi- tecture, it characterizes a harmony of spaces good for a certain activity."

Kahn called this type of sketch a “form drawing.” Kahn often used this kind of drawing as a tool for visualizing and explain- ing his thoughts about a project.
  

Concept sketch of First Unitarian Church of Rochester, New York 

First Unitarian Church of Rochester, New York 

Peter Zumthor

"Peter Zumthors buildings are powerful statements with minimal means, an approach even reflected in his sketches. Light can be seen to be pouring in to the building of Kunstaus as shown in his plan sketch." (CMU Architecture)

Sketch of Kunsthaus Bregenz, Bregenz, Austria

Kunsthaus Bregenz, Bregenz, Austria

Types of architectural drawings

While an architect's job is to design buildings, a large part of their job requires them to communicate their ideas out to others.
As the old saying goes " a picture speaks a thousand words". Before a building gets built, it is very hard for others to visualise how the building is going to look like with just verbal descriptions. Hence, architects need to depend a lot on visual communications to convey their ideas out to others.
Architectural drawings, henceforth, work as a means of communicating ideas, concepts and details.
They include drawings of different views of the proposed building. Here's a list of the basic drawings in a set of architectural drawings. The drawings of Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater house and Mie's Farnsworth House has been used as examples.

Floor Plan

It is a drawn-to-scale diagram of a view from above showing the arrangement of spaces at a particular level of a building.Technically it is a horizontal section cut through a building (at about 1 metre above floor level) showing walls, windows and door openings and other features such as stairs, furnitures and fittings below that level.

Site Plan

It is a specific type of plan that shows the building in relation to its site or surroundings. A site plan shows property boundaries and means of access to the site and nearby structures. 

Sectional Drawings

A section represents a vertical plane cut through the building. Sections are used to describe the relationship between different levels of a building.

Fallingwater sectional drawing

Elevations

An elevation shows the external view of a building seen from one side, a flat representation of one façade.

Fallingwater Elevation

Detailed Drawings

Detail drawings show a small part of the construction drawn at a larger scale, to show how the component parts fit together. 

Farnsworth House roof detail

Images taken from: 
http://blogs.qu.edu.qa/bach2017/modernist/failing-water/
http://www.columbia.edu/cu/gsapp/BT/GATEWAY/FARNSWTH/secccfl.jpg

School by the beach

Wouldn't it be great that you get to go to the beach everyday and have a very valid reason for doing so - because your school is built along the beach?

 
Imagine what you may be doing in school everyday, before and after school hours?  Yes! Building sand castle, having sand between your toes and splashing the salty sea water would probably have become an everyday affair.

 
This is one idea of a preschool design suggested by Lekker Architects in “A Different Class: Preschool Spaces Redefined” a recent project commissioned by Lien Foundation.

For the other interesting ideas of preschool spaces that Lekker Architects came up with, see A Different Class: Preschool Space Redefined.

Christmas Trees by Architects

It's the season for sharing and we thought we will share with you some interesting ideas for Christmas trees designed by architects!

An architectural sculpture as a reinterpretation of the classical XMAS Tree, an artificial and ecological Tree augmented with lights, sound and visuals

Huge christmas tree to be erected on the South Korea side of the border.

The Cloud Trail christmas tree at Kaunas looks like a fir full of clouds that is simply about to float away.

The Modern Christmas Tree by designer, architect, and engineer Lawrence “Bud” Stoecker.

Hermès secret garden

Once upon a time, there was a little "secret garden" found in Lasalle School of the Arts, Singapore This garden was so secretive that it was built in one night and dismantled after five hours!

What happened was that Hermès had asked Lekker Architects to produce a “secret garden,” a wondrous pop-up landscape that would exist as the setting for a party. Hence, they came up with a brilliant solution to borrow some plants from a nursery and place it on the otherwise plain astroturf. On top of the greenery, a series of fantasy like paper sculptures were built. 

This secret garden may hence be termed as an ephemeral architecture. 

(Photo Credits: Lekker Architects)

Art or Architecture?

Look at these awe-inspiring works of art (or architecture?) made by illustrator cum architect Federico Babina that transforms famous works of art into buildings!

He imagined how a house or building designed by some of the world's famous artists, such as Picasso, Andy Warhol and Mondrian, will look like by reinterpreting their style and visual language in their works of art.

Mad about rubber bands

Prior to the rainbow loom craze, french designer Elodie Blanchard was already obsessed with rubber bands and had already started working with those rubber bands bought from 99-cent stores to make costumes and other products like bowls and light fixtures!