thedrawingisnotdead

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The role of the hand 

by

Arthur Lehloenya

M.Arch (Prof) 2015 - University of Pretoria

You can cheat your way through an exam, because all architects under the spell of the hand understand it is a representation of the architect’s ideas. And ideas are never cast in stone, but allow for the evolution of the design even further. Time is their only restriction.  

The hand forms an integral part of the process of a design. The understanding of all matters explained to us through our education; the sun and how far shadows fall, the scale of human to building, identity of the architect through sharp angular lines or skew lines that depict the way they design, understanding materiality, and light. All these components are understood by hand. The hand takes you through the journey. We experience the way the architect understands culture through the way he draws his people. Through the drawing we read how violent and contestative the architect could be and we see the decisions taken.

The plan.

Drawings that allow for one to see the evolution of the plan from conception to finalisation through bumf, in itself becomes art and how pleasing it is to see finished drawings with mistakes, because it is understood that all humans make mistakes.

When I had access to Herbert Baker’s original drawings obtained from the National Archives in Pretoria; seeing the erased lines, and the phrase ‘omitted’ and then realising that this is the man who designed the Union Buildings and how it serves purpose to this day, left me wondering why every student cannot explore the hand.

My work required the hand, not because I am good at it but because the nature of the project required multiple iterations, and an understanding of the interior shell of the structure. Essentially the building proposed has no externality, it does not suffer from the harsh realities of changing weather patterns, and it is a stable, peaceful, quiet and suited for a place of debate.

The section.

The section was important, and not having had access to the interior of the Union Buildings it had to be reimagined, and assumptions had to be made. As one draws and deliberates: I noticed that the repetitions of the columns, the order of symmetry, the shape of the arches, the number of stairs on the amphitheatre, the roof type - all these become informants for the design. Especially given that it is a heritage building that required a right kind of response that adheres to a proposed future and a rich past.

I encourage all to draw. Learn to love the hand. I carried out half of my thesis year with a broken hand, and still managed to put something on paper!

[thedrawingisnotdead]

The construct of contrast - A library in Sunnyside

Development sketches for the design of a library in Sunnyside Pretoria. Sketches explore the concept of metaphysical friction between vernacular architecture vs. modern architecture. 

The concept is to expose the friction through the application of volumes in shear resulting in the animation of space through light through apertures on and within the volumes. 

The plan uses soft, free space and hard volumetric channels to convey the concept through the movement of the user. 

Kevin Mbuso, 2nd year studio, boukunde

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Mnemonic Drift - The Anti-museum

Sketches from a 3rd year final project exploring the sectional relationships developed around the transportation of paper within the museum. 

Drawings develop from investigations of ground and basement level relationships and extend into the upper levels. 

Relationships between levels are communicated in the perpendicular direction through the exploration of layers of skin.

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Capital exchange - A museum for everyday

A critique of an existing mothballed museum in the Pretoria inner city that aims to develop a model for an urban friendly cultural exhibition space. 

Sketches are a series of massing studies taking into account the urban context, scale, volume & materiality. The design also responds to the high neighbouring residential buildings and so as not to obstruct views.

The massing is set back from street heritage facades. Following from the existing layout, the form modulates to develop a cantilever over the existing courtyard - respecting the courtyard as a spatial entity.

Omar Horzook, 5th year studio, boukunde

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Biomimicry discovery park

A series of sketches exploring the plan and sectional composition of structural elements and integrated biomimetic systems like solar assisted ventilation stacks. 

- Marcel Mattheus, 4th year studio, boukunde

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This blog is dedicated to an appreciation of the design drawing; to this artefact of thought in action that too often finds itself lost along the way - neither eligible for presentation nor preservation. 

Its value is in its looseness. In the infinite possibilities for modulation and evolution that its character allows and in its unfinishedness - it presents us with an unfolding understanding of both that which is and that which could be. 

This blog is intended to exhibit everyday drawings of the designer with the hope to gain an understanding of the spirit of the genesis of an idea and the role of the hand in thinking about its evolution towards its final product. 

Works appearing in this blog are predominantly photographed during studio walkabouts at Boukunde, The Department of Architecture - University of Pretoria, South Africa. 

Authors are credited where possible. 

Contributions can be emailed to: thedrawingisnotdead@gmail.com