Pen to Paper Before Click of Mouse

by SweisKloss
May 13, 2021

We all love (and sometimes hate, right?) the digital world, especially this past year. There are incredible software programs for design and architecture that can render 3-D images to perfection and others that can create drawings down to the tiniest of details from every angle possible. But there is something to be said for the tactile quality and visual artistry of putting pen to paper, which is why many from our design + construct team sketch out on paper before turning to the computer.

Now that we are trickling back into the SweisKloss office, we are able to sketch out ideas for projects with one another over a cup of coffee. Who would have thought such a simple pleasure would be absent from our work lives like it has. Showing sketches through Zoom/Teams/Slack and digital whiteboarding/chatting/file-sharing just isn’t the same. Simply put, sketching over coffee feels great and will not be taken for granted…ever.

Drawing initially on paper is encouraged here at SweisKloss. Abeer says, “Hand-drawn sketching is where creation begins.” When she teaches her architectural design classes, she will get the students to draw first, not only to develop their hand skills but to make them really think through their concepts. She adds, “Once you get into the BIM software, there is a lot of technical layering and building of the file. It’s fun to do and a necessity, but you need to know your concepts going in.”

In addition to design ideas, what and when do we sketch? Sometimes we layer a sheet of tracing paper over a photo of an existing structure just to see what’s possible with a project. At client meetings, we will sketch out changes to see if we are all on the same page. There are times we want to see a quick layout of a floor plan or figure out a flow of space. And other times we need to detail out a feature or work out how something will get constructed.

Creating something by hand connects to the artist in all of us, not just in architecture but in many forms and mediums. We thought it would be fun to share some SweisKloss hand sketches with you.

Click on each image to enlarge.