DRAWING MUSEUM

Sergei Tchoban just gave a lecture at Cornell on the topic of his Museum for Architectural Drawing in Berlin. I was not able to attend, principally because I found out about the lecture on the night of the event.

The Museum for Architectural Drawing has as it’s mission to collect and preserve architectural drawings, presumably drawings produced by hand. That of course is great. Although I do start to worry when someone starts to put analogue architectural drawings in a museum; putting things in a museum connotes something that we are loosing and / or have already lost completely.

In the process of doing some background reading on the event, I happened upon Cornell’s pre-lecture write up. And I came upon this amazing passage which I must share. I have underlined the most surprising sentence:

While just a generation ago the acquisition of skill in drawing was still fundamental to the formation of architects, such skills are contested today whether in architectural instruction or in professional practice. In the 21st century, virtually no architect seeks to persuade clients of her capacities as a designer by means of sketches or perspective views. A hand drawing, for example, is not required for the realization of a project. Yet, even now, the development and training of the ability to invent forms and communicate architectural ambitions flows through ideas that are conveyed via the drawing hand. Talent and training were the pillars upon which the art of drafting rested well into the 20th century. It is at this point that the Tchoban Foundation intervenes to sustain and reawaken an interest in architectural drawing.  (original)

Are you kidding me? Virtually no architect uses hand drawings to persuade their clients? And this is from Cornell Department of Architecture? I guess it was just as well that I missed the lecture. Because if I would have been there, I most likely would have made some sort of statement in the Q and A that I would have been embarrassed about later.

Nevertheless, it is alarming that a) we are putting hand drawings in museums because it looks like there won’t be many more and b) that there is a cultural mindset which eliminates the analogue architectural sketch.

So, boy, do we have our work cut out for us. Start drawing, people! They’ve opened a drawing museum already!  We have to keep this antiquated concept of showing an actual hand sketch to our clients alive! We need to start hoarding our pencils and watercolor brushes! The end indeed might be nigh!