It’s a familiar argument in architecture and design circles—should designers know how to hand draw? In celebration of those in the “yes!” camp, we spotlight a hand-drawn rendering from our Membership. Here, Doug Wright, whose recent book, From Hand to Home (Rizzoli), charts his design process beginning with a hand sketch.
In my practice, every project starts with site sketches and watercolors by hand, and then the drawings become more refined. The hand drawings and watercolors study everything from the ephemeral aspects like the feel of the house, inspirations, interiors, and the meaning of the place to technical elements such as how the parts come together and work. And then we turn to the construction drawings in CAD.
CAD is great for production, proportions, and exact locations, but it falls far short on expressing feelings and perceptions. I don’t think a CAD drawing can express any of the ephemeral aspects of a project. It’s always fun to have drawings and watercolors as part of a process that results in a house built for a family. I love painting landscapes and architectural scenes, but there’s something really special about hand drawings becoming built forms.
Below is a beach house for a family of three sons and a daughter. They loved traditional design, but wanted something very open and modern so we used a combination of cedar solar shades and stucco – two very traditional materials. The cedar has weathered beautifully, just like a shingle style house.
