Sketching Architectural Details

TUESDAY TIPS AND TRICKS

If you have ever finished a sketch, held it up and compared it to the actual subject only to realize that something about your sketch was just not right, this post is for you.

Between Barbara Week's recent post entitled "Off The Grid - Designing a Page" which talked about guidelines as compositional tools, and a recent architectural sketch I made, I wanted to "piggy-back" off of the topic of guidelines in urban sketching and talk specifically about how guidelines can help you simplify and map out the different parts of architectural details.

Buildings and architectural details can seem like daunting subjects to draw.  Thankfully, there are several observational cues to pick up on that will help you map out your drawing and establish an educated guess about the sizes, proportions, patterns and elements that make up your specific detail.  You don't even need to know the technical names of the architectural elements, or how they go together.  You just have to have the ability to make observations.  After all, that's half the battle of urban sketching is, isn't it?

(A couple quick side notes: 1.Check out a couple of my previous and related posts for a more full set of tips on architectural sketching.  "Perspective for the Urban Sketcher" and "Drawing Architecture: Sighting Size and Proportion" AND 2) these ideas can be applied to other subjects including figure drawing, landscapes, and most other types of subjects as well.)

Here is the scan of my sketch.  As you can see more clearly here than in the picture above, I used several guidelines in my initial pencil sketch before adding value in ink.  I left the pencil guidelines in for aesthetics.  Personally, I like how guidelines can add to the story of a sketch.  Guidelines show your process.  They add a level of technicality to the drawing. Many of the greatest artists left pencil underlays partially visible in their masterpieces. I think guidelines give an added personal touch, but this is just my opinion.

The image to the right is fairly self explanatory, however, I will share a little bit about how I approached this drawing.

I began by drawing the center line (dashed) guideline.  Since this detail is symmetrical, the center line is the most important guide to get you started.  Recognizing that the left and right sides of the detail have the same width, I added two more vertical guides, spaced equally as far away from the center line as I could have approximated while standing up, holding the sketchbook.

After I had determined the overall width of the detail, I used the sighting technique (explained in more detail here) to approximate how many widths (D) tall the detail was.  I found that the details was about 1.75 widths (D) tall.  Basing all of the approximate sizes off of one or two of the dimensions in your detail will help you keep all of the different parts of the drawing proportional to the detail as a whole and in relationship to one another.

I then drew a few horizontal lines.  I found larger shapes that I could use as benchmarks for the detail, so to speak.  So as you can see, (bottom to top) my horizontal guidelines fell on the base of the column, the center line of the window, the top of the middle column, the top of the two side columns, the bottom of the entablature, as well as the top of the arched pediment at the top.  Like in all other forms of design, there is a method to the madness in this detail's composition, which is why the sizes of A, .5A and 1.5 A all work well together, and were easy to approximate.

I drew the guidelines at the center line of the window, the top of the middle column, and the tops of the two side columns first.  A quick approximation told me that the bottom and top portions were half the height of A, and that the curved pediment on top was about 1.5A.

Now that the major heights and widths were mapped out, I filled in all of the rest of the details. (Column capitals, window mullions, arched openings above windows, additional lines on the entablature, as well as the dentils in the molding).  I did not draw guidelines for every single detail (although if you want to you can.)  Instead, since the major sizes and proportions were laid out, I could then "eyeball" the sizes and proportions of the smaller details since enough information was already mapped out for me.

This is something that may take a while to get the hang of, but once you do it a few times it will begin to make more sense.  At first, sketching like this may take a little longer than just "winging it".  However, the more you do it, the more it will make sense and will end up increasing your sketching speed in the end.  Learning how to sight size, proportion and perspectives were the most valuable urban sketching skills I learned when I was first introduced to urban sketching.  They are skills I use in almost every sketch I do to this day.

I hope this post, along with the previous posts on sighting and perspective are helpful.  Feel free to ask any questions.

Lastly, don't forget to follow us on Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest.  If you live in the Chicago area, connect with us through Facebook.  We sketch as a group every third weekend of each month at different locations throughout Chicago.

Andrew

Drawing Architecture: Sighting Size and Proportion

In my last post “Perspective for the Urban Sketcher:Sighting” I shared a technique for drawing in perspective.  With some of the feedback I received from that post, I was reminded of a related, yet different technique that can be used with sighting.  Sighting can also be used to gauge size and proportions.  In this post, I will build upon the sighting technique and show you how to draw architecture, simplifying an elevation down to large, simple shapes and using architectural features as measuring devises.

If you've ever spent time observing architecture, you've probably noticed that there are almost always some degree of pattern and relationships between different shapes and masses.  Whether they are windows, doors, columns, arches, roofs etc... they are all sized and proportioned in relationship to one another and to the building as a whole.  An urban sketcher can use different elements of a building as tools to his/her advantage, especially when sighting.

When sketching architecture, size and proportions are dependent on your distance from and relative position to your subject.  So, before getting to the steps, the following rule must be followed in order for this technique to work:

Remember, once you decide where to sit and sketch, you must stay in the same spot until you have at least marked out all sizes and proportions.  (Once you move, your distance and relative position to the subject changes, and your sighting approximations will be inconsistent).

Sighting Size and Proportions: Step by Step

1) Take a few minutes to observe the building, pointing out some of the major shapes, structural features or patterns.  When sighting for size and proportion, you will draw your building starting with the larger masses of the building, moving down to the smallest masses and details last.

2) Chose one feature of the building to use as a measuring unit.  I chose the width of the tower.  With your sighting tool (pencil, wooden skewer etc…), fully extend your arm out, placing it in front of the architectural feature.  (It helps to close one eye and squint).  Move your thumb along your sighting tool until it reaches the edge of the architectural feature, essentially measuring the feature’s width.  This will become the measuring unit for the majority of the sighting.  So, all measurements will be in X number of tower widths.

3)  Measure the width and height of the building.  The length of this building was about 8 tower width’s wide.  The tower was 3.5 tower widths tall, and the roof heights changed at different locations, but ranged from 1.5-2 tower widths tall.  Use tick marks and guidelines to help visualize your measurements.  Here I marked out the overall length of the building at slightly more than 8 widths.  Use guidelines for all of your measurement.  You will begin to see how different parts of the building relate to one another.

 4) Mark out all the other large masses.  In this building there were essentially 6 large masses that comprised the entire elevation.  I sized each portion based on my measuring unit, the tower width.



The 8 tick marks I made on the length of the building helped as guidelines.  So for example, I sighted that the first mass (farthest left) was about ¾ of 1 tower width.  Since I have the tower width marked out, I was able to draw my vertical line for that portion of the wall at ¾ of the way through the first tick mark.  Repeat these steps for the rest of the masses.



5) Now that you've marked out the largest masses of the building, move to the medium sized masses.  For me these were the arches, windows and doors.  The colonnade of arches is nicely divided into 6 uniform bays, so I was easily able to divide the middle portion of the building up into 6 equal parts.  Use this type of logic for the rest of the details.  (If your details are not evenly spaced, simply use a smaller architectural element as your measuring unit to determine the distances and proportions you need.)

Now you can begin to add details, value, shading and shadows.



Once you feel comfortable sighting sizes and proportions on a building at a straightforward view, you will be ready to combine the techniques of perspective with those in this post.

I hope this is helpful!  As always, let me know if you have any questions!

-Andrew

Tuesday Tips & Tricks: "Perspective for the Urban Sketcher: Using the Sighting Technique"

One of the most challenging techniques to master in on-location sketching is perspective.  Many people shy away from architectural, city scenes or subjects involving vanishing points because of all of the rules involved.  Even when following the rules, it’s pretty difficult to achieve a completely accurate record of the actual scene.  Most of the time when we sketch on location we use small to medium sized sketchbooks.  More often than not, the vanishing points will fall well off of the edge of our pages, making it impossible to calculate the actual vanishing points.  Lastly, when we are urban sketching, we don’t always have a lot of time to analyze and perfect the perspective.  However, a technique I use, called Sighting, will enable you to draw in perspective quickly, and without needing to fully construct a perfect set of vanishing points.

Sighting is based off of the principles of perspective, but is a shortcut, so to speak, and a great, simple trick to use in both shorter and lengthier sketching sessions.

Before moving to the step by step explanation, there are 2 rules that must be followed in order for this to work.  Keep these in mind while reading about and using the technique.  These rules are crucial and sighting will not work unless they are followed.

Rules:

• Once you decide where to sit and sketch, you must stay in the same spot until you have at least marked out your perspective lines.  (Once you move, your point of view changes, thus your horizon line and vanishing point(s) will change as well).

• For consistency, hold your sketchbook in one position until you have at least marked out your perspective lines.  For example, if the sketchbook is sitting flat on your lap for the first half of the sketch, do not tilt it up for the second half of the sketch.  This will ensure consistency in the transferring of your lines.

Sighting: Step by Step

1) I use a thin, straight, wooden skewer and that I carry with me all the time in my travel kit.  A pen or pencil will work fine too, but the longer and thinner the sighting tool, the more accurate of a reading you will get and the easier it will be to see.  About 6”-8” is plenty.

2) Hold the sighting tool at one end.

3) Fully extend your arm out and hold the sighting tool parallel with your body.  This is important.  Do not tilt the tool outward towards the subject, or inward toward your body.  You will only get an accurate reading if the tool is parallel with your body.

4) Align the tool with the edge of the receding line.  Here I am aligning it with the roof line of the building.  (You will want to place your tool directly on top of the edge when actually doing this.  I put the tool slightly above the edge so it easier for you to see.)  Imagine the hands of a clock.  Only rotate your tool like the hands on a clock would rotate around the center point.

5) Hold the angle of the tool and slowly place the tool on your paper and draw the line.  (I do not mean to imply to use the tool as a ruler, just as a visual guide.)  I usually map out perspective line in pencil because you will need to double check and edit your lines as you go.  The more you do this, the better you will get at transferring the lines and soon enough you will not need to edit. 

Therefore, once you have drawn your line,

6) Double check your line and repeat steps 3,4 and 5 again to make a revised version of the first line.  With a line already drawn, it is easier to compare what you have drawn to what you are sighting, and you can make changes relative to what you have drawn.

7) Repeat steps 2-6 for all of the lines you do not feel comfortable free handing and remember to follow the two rules I mentioned at the beginning.

Here is quick sketch I completed using the sighting technique.  Take a look at all of the different angles that are transferred to the sketch.

I hope this is helpful!  Feel free to ask any questions!

-Andrew Banks