Single-Handedly

April 1, 2019

Design practitioners and instructors lament the lack of drawing skills among recent graduates. Yet how critical is individual expression in what is ultimately a collective process? In presenting dramatic examples of mostly freehand work, two authors attempt to explain why many architects set aside digital tools in favor of quick sketches, more detailed drawings, and even watercolor paintings. Moses, an architect and author, has produced the more conceptually advanced and nuanced volume with Single-Handedly. She communicates ably the benefits and limitations of computer-aided and freehand representation. Jones, contributor to Rizzoli's "How To Read" series, has compiled a visually stunning catalog of examples in Making Marks, from ink on grid paper to bursting color landscapes. Arranged by six themes (study, structure, composition, image, story, dream), Single-Handedly offers concise, elegant reflections on each, followed by the work of between five and nine architects, each introduced with admirable descriptive clarity. Making Marks, on the other hand, with its strictly alphabetical arrangement, relies more heavily on quotations from contributing firms and on landscape format with captivating architectural alphabets. VERDICT Both titles lead to the conclusion that, if architects are to continue as visionaries, they must preserve the venerable technique of drawing that makes personal expression possible.--Paul Glassman, Yeshiva Univ. Libs., New York

Copyright 2019 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.