Tuesday, January 18, 2011

A Trace of the Hand

"Don't you use the computer to draw?"

I was asked while trying to finish a drawing on my coffee table; 2B pencil on butter paper - folded into a sketch pad. "Yes, sometimes..." was the short answer.

This is slightly longer answer - I use the pencil or pen on paper because the lines drawn have the ability to reflect my personality and at times, my mood. Hand drawn have character that is absent in the computer generated drawings with their annonymous lines. Of course, there is a place for the CAD drawing and we have benefited from them. But ultimately, in our line of work - the thinking almost always starts with the hand-drawn line; the hand obediently tracing the mind's vision.
I place value on the trace of hand, as I draw over CAD drawings prepared for me. I feel that I do this not only to leave my 'mark' on those sterile pages, but also to reinforce an idea, to check and maybe correct a wayward line. 
Arlene drawing on-site on concrete


It is the most effective means of communication; to argue a point, to explain a design idea or to clarify a detail - a pencil works equally well on paper as on concrete.

2 comments:

  1. It is almost impossible to design on CAD. About that poem , Art of Disappearing, you can listen to it on You Tube . Just plug in the name .
    Another poet I like is Allen Ginsberg.

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  2. When will you be back in Kuching?
    let me know; you might want to drop by our office

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