A mate of mine is a tutor at a University school of Architecture. He’s an engineer and loves to tell me stories of some of the more preposterous designs he sees from some of his architecture students, and often laments the fundamental understanding of the structural implications of some of the decisions they make (he is biased of course). On one occasion recently we were discussing Universities and the implications of tuition fees, and something I said made him very animated indeed, so I thought I’d share it here and see if it had the same reaction (I think he called me a heretic)…
My proposal was to ban drawings at Architecture schools.
When I started at University, I spent the best part of the first two years on projects that in one way or another focussed on developing my presentation and drawing skills. One project was simply to produce a charcoal sketch of a space, capturing light and shade and the ‘feel of the space. I left my first degree without a single CAD skill, and my year-out employer had to send me on a 2-day course to learn the software. During my second degree, the focus remained on drawing skills, and we were constantly judged against those students that used this method – I remember being praised for my CAD drawings once – “They actually look like hand drawings”! I was pretty offended.
I have deliberately not mentioned names in any of the above, because from conversations with colleagues and friends, I know it is a similar story around the country. Whilst times have moved on (CAD and BIM are now part of some curricula), there remains a preoccupation with the necessity of drawing skills in architecture schools.
So why ban drawing? Surely this is a fundamental part of being an architect? My proposal is a deliberate challenge – in reality I was proposing a University course where submissions were purely digital – potentially even virtual. Why focus on something that is largely irrelevant to the end result? BIM is about coordinating and integrating information and this is impossible to do once information is removed from that process. What would happen if all information on every project was interchangeable? If sketches were vector information, it could be used to drive models in the form of paths and definitions and could be used by multiple parties without the risks that translation introduces.
I understand the subtleties of the situation – drawing is a skill that underlies the creative process, and being able to articulate yourself is a crucial skill. But the current underlying implication that if you cannot draw it will hinder your progress infuriates me. In an age where Universities are pushing towards £9,000 a year, I would love to see an Institution break the mould and challenge tradition. Imagine the interview – by Skype?
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