Observation: Graph Paper Gives Me a Woody
The one strength I do have however, is design – I can spend days perfecting a layout on pads of crisp white graph paper. How intoxicating it is to remove the cellophane on a fresh 5 pack of paper covered in beautifully even spaced vertical and horizontal perfection aligning into perfectly controlled ¼ inch scaled boxes. Don’t even get me started on a pack of freshly sharpened HB number 2 pencils!
My graduation from Lego to actual architectural layouts and design came during a grade 9 drafting course, where I learned about proper pencil lead weights, non-smudge techniques of hand position, bathroom fixture templates, Imperial and Metric architectural scales, T-Squares and the ultimate in luxury, a parallel bar. This slick board width straight edge acrylic and wood scale, glided effortlessly across the mint green vinyl covered drafting tables on taught airline cables, ensuring lines were razor straight and level. Our teacher, Mr. Stephenson, taught us the proper techniques of reading plans – Structural, Mechanical, Electrical, Architectural, providing me with the essential background knowledge in learning how to draw said plans. He preached a gospel of lines, hatches and symbols representative of interior drywall, stud walls, insulation, vaper barriers and brick cladding – all of which I soaked in like a sponge – I had found my calling!
Our first assignment was to draw the layout for a simple 3-bedroom bungalow, a task designed to demonstrate our proficiency in the required wall structure types and composition along with our grasp of non smudge line techniques. While my classmates proceeded to follow the most basic of instructions and draw up simple and uninspiring War Time 3 bed, one bath bungalows with an “L” shaped Livingroom/dining room combo wrapping around small functionless kitchens, I set to work. Limited only by the size of my 24” tall by 36” wide piece of vellum, I created a masterpiece of bedrooms, ensuite baths (expertly utilizing my crisp new ¼ inch scale American Standard Bathroom Design Template), kitchen (with pantry), formal entrance and a glass enclosed family room with fireplace and concealed staircase to a yet to be designed lower level. The proposed structure ended up as an early bungalow McMansion – large and extremely square, designed to maximize square footage, creatively stymied only by the size and rectangular shape of my drafting paper. In the end, I didn’t receive any higher or lower marks than my unimaginative classmates, but Mr. Stephenson did make a point of hailing my originality.
Although I’ve worked with a number of Architects throughout my professional career and greatly admire the skills and talents of their Auto CADD designers, CADD is a program I have never picked up/tried/mastered. For me, there’s just no substitute for a fresh clean sheet of paper and a freshly sharpened number 2 pencil!
