Observing Through Drawing: A Lunchtime Sketching

Monday afternoons are our CPD slot. Sometimes that means a talk in the office or a visit to a project site. Sometimes it means something a little different.

This week, we took our sketchbooks over to St Paul’s Square for an informal sketching session. The weather obliged, and we spent a lunchtime sitting in the square, taking time to observe the buildings around us.

St Paul’s Square is one of Birmingham’s architectural gems, the city’s last remaining Georgian square, centred around the fine Grade I listed St Paul’s Church. We know the church particularly well: it is one of our current projects, where Stephen Oliver is church architect.

Architecture is about conveying ideas and sketching remains one of the most powerful tools we have for thinking through and communicating those ideas. Whether working on a concept design or capturing a fragment of historic detail, drawing by hand encourages us to look more closely and to understand more deeply.

Sketching is a good excuse to stop and notice details that otherwise blur into the background. It also makes you look up. But the idea of the session was to spend some time looking and recording by hand, however simply, without the pressure of perfect results. A quick line drawing, a few notes, a colour wash, anything to slow down and observe.

​Back in the office, we shared our sketches, and it was a good way to start conversations about materials, alterations, and the layers of history in the square, and a reminder that taking time to look closely is a valuable part of our work.