Hosted by the Southeast Chapter | 1 AIA CES Learning Unit|Elective
SEEING DRAWING THINKING: Why Hand Drawing Skills Matter in Design
In his 2020 book, Draw In Order to See, scholar-architect Mark Alan Hewitt, FAIA, advances the theory that drawings are external memory prompts for designers, who develop concepts in “cognitive loops” between hand sketches and internal mental images. Contrary to what we have been taught, imagination does not involve purely abstract concepts or ideas, but is connected to both the body and the environment. Our memories of things constitute the raw material needed to create any “original” design for a chair, building, or garden.
In this lecture, Hewitt will discuss how the act of making a drawing, or a model, is a mode of cognition that allows designers to conceive the artifacts they make prior to actualization. Presenting examples from design case studies, often historical, he will show how thinking, drawing, and perception are united in any form of design activity, including the habits of craftspeople when they make new artifacts.
Mark Alan Hewitt, FAIA, is one of America’s foremost scholar-architects. His research on American architecture of the Progressive Era has won awards and recognition from academic peers as well as the public at large. In six books and dozens of articles he has advanced knowledge and appreciation for the Arts & Crafts movement, early 20th century American domestic architecture, and the history of architectural representation, among other subjects.
He has taught at several universities, including Rice, Columbia, the University of Pennsylvania, and Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey.
Following training in architecture and architectural history at Yale and the University of Pennsylvania, Hewitt began teaching architecture full time at Rice University in 1982. In addition to research, he practiced architecture with his first wife, the late Lynn Bensel Hewitt. After fifteen years in academia, and two award-winning books, Hewitt resumed full-time practice on his own in 1996, specializing in adaptive re-use and historic preservation.
In addition to his work in preservation, Hewitt has designed projects for private and institutional clients, ranging from geothermal-heated country houses to community rooms and education facilities at historic churches in New Jersey. His design work has been published both in Europe and the United States.
His book on the American country house is acknowledged as the standard work in the field. In addition to opening up a new avenue of research on the country house, Hewitt was the first scholar to seriously examine the architecture of Gustav Stickley and his Craftsman companies, shedding light on an often-misunderstood chapter in the American Arts & Crafts movement. He is known as one of the most prolific biographers of American architects and for his work on the history and theory of architectural representation.
During the past ten years Hewitt has resumed his research on design thinking and architectural representation. His new book, the first of its kind, advances the theory that drawings are external memory prompts for designers, who develop concepts in “cognitive loops” between hand sketches and internal mental images. He is an advocate for the emerging theory of embodied cognition, the most important idea to emerge from brain science in recent years.
This event is hosted by an ICAA Chapter. Please check the Chapter website or contact the Chapter directly, for the most up-to-date details including dates, times, and pricing.
The ICAA SE Chapter thanks the sponsor of this lecture, Norman Davenport Askins, Architect.
At the end of the course, participants will be able to:
Instructional Delivery Method: Live Online Learning Program Program Level: Introductory Prerequisites: None required AIA CES Program Approval Expiration Date: February 23, 2024 Provider Number: G193 Provider Statement: The Institute of Classical Architecture & Art is a registered provider of AIA-approved continuing education under Provider Number G193. All registered AIA CES Providers must comply with the AIA Standards for Continuing Education Programs. Any questions or concerns about this provider or this learning program may be sent to AIA CES ([email protected] or (800) AIA 3837, Option 3).
This learning program is registered with AIA CES for continuing professional education. As such, it does not include content that may be deemed or construed to be an approval or endorsement by the AIA of any material of construction or any method or manner of handling, using, distributing, or dealing in any material or product.
AIA continuing education credit has been reviewed and approved by AIA CES. Learners must complete the entire learning program to receive continuing education credit. AIA continuing education Learning Units earned upon completion of this course will be reported to AIA CES for AIA members. Certificates of Completion for both AIA members and non-AIA members are available upon request.
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