Drawing and Illustrating Architecture: A Step-by-Step Guide to the Art of Drawing and Illustrating Beautiful Buildings

PART ONE

Materials and Techniques

In Part 1 of this book, I begin by walking you through the essential art materials you will need to get started on the projects within the book, followed by tips for setting up and organizing your workspace. This is information I’ve gathered through years of trial and error as an artist, so I’m simply sharing with you what I have learned works well.

Next, we’ll look at how to build a photo reference library, which will be useful for your future projects and is a fun way to spend some time appreciating the world around you. We’ll also discuss the benefits of sketching. I love to explore with a sketchbook in hand.

In chapter 3, we’ll get into bit of art theory. This is important information to understand because it is the foundation of the drawings featured in this book, so it’s worth taking the time to read through it. For instance, throughout the book I talk about the contrasts between light and dark and how these elements impact the final outcome of a piece of art.

In chapter 4, you will learn the three different methods I regularly use to draw out a picture: the grid method, freehand sketching, and working from a printout or digital screen. If you plan to use one of these methods, you will need to pay particular attention to this section before moving on to the projects in Part 2 of the book. You’ll also learn some basic drawing techniques and how to layer coloured pencils to create a drawing full of texture and rich colour!

There is a lot of information to take in, so you may find it useful to look through everything once, and then re-read relevant parts whenever necessary as you work through the book.

My biggest piece of advice is to take your time and enjoy the process of creating your drawings. Playing with the colours and fineliners and learning what you can do is very satisfying, so have fun!

CHAPTER ONE

Art Materials and Workspace

This chapter covers all the art supplies you will need to work on the projects in this book. After many years of trial and error, I have found the specific types and brands that work best for me, so what follows is a basic guide of my choices to get you started. I’m sure you will find what works best for you and what your budget allows you to spend. The good news is you don’t have to spend a fortune! There is an array of different options available to suit all budgets.

The costliest items are good-quality coloured pencils. I have built up my collection slowly by buying individual colours as I needed them—I have never bought an expensive set. Big sets also often contain colours that you will never use. I started by buying a few colours at a time, focusing first on my monochrome collection. I do enjoy experimenting with new products, so I am always on the lookout for something new to try.

What matters more than expensive art materials are dedication and lots of practice!

You can do just as much with a sharp, inexpensive regular graphite pencil as you can with an expensive mechanical pencil. However, the benefit of a mechanical pencil is that you don’t have to stop to sharpen it. The point is always sharp, which helps with precision and a consistent weight line.

The exact tools you use are a personal choice. There is so much to choose from in art shops and in online stores. That said, below is a list of the absolute essentials you will need to follow the techniques I use in this book, followed by a more detailed breakdown of everything. Anything beyond the items on this list is optional.

Toned grey or tan paper (I use grey throughout the book)

White cartridge or watercolour paper

White highlighting pen

Sharp HB pencil (preferably mechanical)

Black 0.05mm fineliner pen

Coloured pencils that are quite soft and blend well

Blender

Eraser

Ruler

Set square (also known as a triangle)

Pencil sharpener

Masking tape or washi tape

DRAWING PENCILS

A drawing always starts with the humble graphite pencil. There are so many different types of pencils available, but you don’t need anything expensive or fancy—unless, of course, you want to invest in something special. The most important aspect of any pencil you use is that it is sharp!

I choose to use a mechanical pencil because it gives fantastic precision and it doesn’t need sharpening; you just have to replace the lead inside when it runs out.

There is an amazing variety of mechanical pencils available to buy, from very expensive and nice-looking ones to simple, less-expensive options. They actually all do the same job! Even the cheapest pencil can give you years of service and is endlessly refillable. I have broken a few expensive pencils by accidently dropping them, which resulted in bent nibs and made them unusable, so I don’t buy anything too expensive.

Something I always look for is a pencil that has an eraser on the end for making quick and convenient corrections.

You can buy refill packs of the lead in different sizes. A good size to choose for detailed drawing is 0.3mm or 0.5mm.

Pencil Grades

All graphite pencil comes in different grades, on a scale from hard to very soft. The softer the lead is, the darker its marks will be, whereas a harder, firmer lead will create lighter lines and shading.

Softer leads have a B grading with a number next to it to indicate how soft the lead is, with B being slightly soft and 9B being extremely soft. At the other end of the scale are harder leads with an H grading. In the same way as with the B grades, the numbers go as far as a 9H, which is extremely hard.

In the middle of both of these scales is the HB pencil, which is neither too hard nor too soft. I generally use this grade for drawing out because it doesn’t smudge or make a mess and I can create clear, firm lines.

For more loose and sketchy drawings, I use a 2B graded pencil, which is slightly softer and allows me to be more expressive.

FINELINER PENS

Fineliner pens are a type of fine fibre- or plastic-tip pen that can be used for drawing and sketching (FIGURE 1.3). The tips are usually quite robust and don’t bend or break very easily. They are a great choice for drawing because you can find ones that are relatively cheap and they are most often disposable.

My favourite drawing pen is the highly economical Uni-Ball Pin drawing pen, which contains waterproof and fade-proof pigment ink. This is a nonnegotiable pen feature for me, as I want my work to last a lifetime, and the ink in this pen is archival. I also don’t want the ink to run if I use another medium, such as watercolour paint, on top of it. This ink will not smudge if it gets wet.

Another excellent pen that is widely available is the Sakura Pigma Micron drawing pen.

You can buy fineliner pens in many different nib sizes, each of which creates a different line weight (FIGURE 1.4). In other words, a 0.05mm pen nib will create a very fine line, compared to a 0.8mm pen nib, which will create a much broader line.

Throughout this book I use a Uni-Ball Pin 0.05mm pen. These pens are disposable but last quite a long time. I find that I get a lot of good drawing miles from just one pen. I keep the older pens for a while when they start to fade to create lighter shading.

COLOURED PENCILS

There are many different brands of coloured pencils available, of varying quality. You can buy them in beautiful sets in metal tins and expensive special wooden boxes. I have only ever bought them as single pencils and have built up my collection over a few years.

I have a core set of colours that get used and replaced continuously, and other colours I couldn’t resist buying that rarely get used but are nevertheless beautiful to have and occasionally use.

Here are the main qualities I look for in a pencil:

It must be smooth and creamy and blend easily.

The colour must be lightfast, bright, and vivid.

It must layer well and be capable of creating rich, opaque colour.

Most of my pencils are from the artists’ quality brand Faber-Castell Polychromos. I have settled on consistently using this brand because the pencils tick all the boxes for my requirements. They are also readily available from many online stores and local art shops.

These pencils have oil pastel lead that blends really well. The lead is highly resistant to breaking, can be sharpened, and is capable of holding a sharp point, which is essential for detailed work. They also come in a huge range of lightfast and vivid colours that are smudge proof and water resistant.

My other favourite brands that I use in combination with the Polychromos are Pablo pencils by Caran d’Ache and Holbein pencils. Both of these brands tick all my boxes and have beautiful, soft, opaque colours.

Other popular pencil brands are Prismacolor and Luminance 6901, which is also made by Caran d’Ache.

BLENDERS

I use a double-ended, rubber-tipped pastel blender for blending and pushing my pencil colours together (FIGURE 1.7). This is a useful tool designed for use with soft pastels, but I find it works really well with coloured pencil too. I like the way that I can push the pencil colours deep into the tooth of the paper and create a smooth finished surface.

You can also buy specialist blending pencils that do the same job.

PAPER

Toned paper

My favourite paper to use for drawing is toned paper. I either use toned grey or toned tan paper—throughout this book I use toned grey.

I use toned paper because it allows me to use a greater range of tonal values in my drawings. When using a white pencil or pen on toned paper, the colour will stand out clearly, but on white paper you will be unable to see it at all.

There are many toned papers available, but my go-to paper of choice is one made by a company called Strathmore. It is a nice shade of mid-grey and is smooth and 100% recycled. It is a good thickness and can take a lot of work and pencil layers without buckling.

White Paper

You will need a sheet of white paper to draw on for the black-and-white drawing project in chapter 5.

A heavyweight cartridge paper or smooth, hot press watercolour paper works well for this purpose. Choose a nice-quality paper that is thick enough that it won’t warp or buckle when you work on it. You’ll want it to stay nice in case you decide to put your finished work into a mount/matt or frame.

You will also need an extra single sheet of either clean white paper or tracing paper to keep under your hand to separate it from the drawing surface while working. This is essential to keep your work clean and prevent