Each summer, the Yale School of Architecture takes a group of students to Rome, for a hand drawing workshop. Througout their visit students are encouraged to roam the city to explore and discover design elements utilized and maintained through time. The current exhibit “To Draw is to To See: Drawings of Rome” is a compilation of over 60 pieces created during the past three summers. During my visit, it was a realization that digital has seeped its way into academic specialties. With only a handful of architectural departments still using the fundamentals of hand drawing, others have shifted to the sole crutch of computer technology. Which, based on the continual advancements of tech industry, seems to reign supreme across the board. Throughout the space, each work provides an in-depth, down scaled look to the details of historical structures, like the Pantheon by Nancy Putnam.
“We are committed to hand drawing as a primary tool of discovery,” said Robert A. M. Stern, architect and dean of the Yale School of Architecture. “True possession of forms comes not only through intellect, but equally critically through the body of inhabiting and measuring them by drawing them.”
The exhibit is currently on display in the North Gallery of Hearst Tower. Guests are allowed to view the exhibit Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m with given prior notice.
Photos courtesy of Hearst Corporation.