Sectional, and Plan View Drawing

Sketchbook drawings, on-site

These conceptual drawings are from the same job site as yesterday.  Yes, I know  . . . I wrote yesterday about 
using a green marker for plant material, and boom! here we are showing plants in brown. Well it is the only 
marker I had with me on-site.

The top drawing is a rough plan view drawing of the site and the lower is a quick elevation drawing of the
site. If I remember correctly I drew the plan view drawing 1st then the elevation. On-site I would say I draw
the elevation 1st about 75% of the time. Even more than that if the client is standing there. After all this type of landscape rendering tells the real story.

The follow up of the plan view shows spatial relationship. The circles  for the plants are rough and fast, the idea is to show that I am looking at several varieties, and of several sizes. The elevation drawing even better shows the plant differences and height variations.

At no point though are we specific on the varieties. The only specific is the use of barnstone for the wall, and that there would be a terrace designed above and slightly back to the left.

p.s. This design did not go in. The owner was given a deal on a Unilock display, and since they are a Unilock dealer that's what they put in.

Another great Link

 During the last week I had several folks stop by and drop comments on several different topics, this of course, leads you to look at their sites. One of those commenters was Alina Chau who is a illustrator and artist. And a artist she is.
 
I hope everyone takes a look at her site. Most importantly take a long look at her doodles and sketchbook
post. It shows great insight into the design process. Which every designer including yours truly needs to continually improve and adjust. They are terrific. Thanks Alina!

Someday I think I will have to host a seminar where we do nothing but lok at the design process, 
through the doodle, rough-sketch, sketchbooks, loose line way of graphic thinking. 

To my way of thinking this is where I see a lot of CAD Landscape Designers fail. 

They do no rough sketches, doodles, anything. Just straight to the layout of the house/property and right onto the landscape . . . probably having it look just like the last 10 designs. I've seen 
a lot of these designs from other LD's where it is just the same thing over and over.

At any rate go look at Alina's great work, very inspiring!!!

From the Sketchbook

Waterfeature

 This was a black and white line drawing I had scanned from one of my idea books, and turned into a color drawing using Paintnet. I guess what I am really doing is using several different types of mediums now when I doodle.

I have often talked about how important it is to doodle if you are in a creative field or endeavor.Doodling switches me into a total different mindset, and I've noticed the more I doodle-or if my doodling gets real intense-a lot of ideas begin to flow, and flow fast they do.

What's really fun; especially when it's late . . . like right now as I post this. Is that the World seems so quiet I can go with that quiet for one kind of thought process/ solution finder, or I can go totally opposite. Put on the headphones, crank up the music, and let it just rip.

I have actually reached the point where I can watch my right arm draw-very weird to watch. It's like there is some sort of dis-attachment between mind and body. I guess it's what some would call  being in the zone. Heck-in my case it may be me out of the zone.

So I think that the doodling thing . . . is good.  for many reasons:

• To kill time.
  
• To start the creative process.
• To warm up for actual rendering/design work.
• To find solutions in a quick, stress-free way.
• To aggravate teachers (yes I was one of those).
• Work with different tools . . . as in no pressure to draw with the pen/marker that a final drawing will be completed with.
• Impress people who can only draw stick men and circle trees . . .

So there you have it, get busy doodling, it's only 10 till 3:00 AM my time.

Another from the Sketchbook

One of those days at the conference when it was more about doodling than 
about note taking. 

Sobe anyone??? 

From the Sketchbook

The note says 1994 so who knows what I was working on at that time. There was a time frame there when I built quite a few of these stone and wood benches, and I was always looking for way to incorporate some other type of sculptural element in the project.

Or . . . since it was December 22nd, I might have been sitting in a Waffle House somehwere, whipped out my Rotring pen and just started doodling away.

From the Seminar Book

 
"The space is more important than the objects." - ?

"There is only one definition of success-to spend your own life your own way."
-Mark Twain

"Why not go out on a limb, thats where the fruit is anyway." -Shirley Mclaine

"Spend whatever the amount is, but spend the amount with integrity."
-Ryan Gainey 

"The Three Rules of Work"

1. "Out of clutter, find simplicity."
2. "From discord, find harmony."
3. "In the middle of difficulty, lies opportunity."
-Albert Einstein

Seminar sketchbook 3

Well this is another scan out of the '97/'98 book. It looks like I was in a class on drawing people-a lot of my former studente were terrified of drawing people, just terrified.

Actually, all it takes is an oval, a hangar, some folds, a "W" and some tiny "o's". and you've got a person. See? Don't you feel better - you can draw people.

Sketchbook Rendering

 
A rendering from the old days . . . this was taken out of the '97/'98 seminar sketchbook. I have kept these books since 1988/'89. That way I have all my notes since that time from all seminars attended-save one.

I was leaving the .ANLA Management Clinic in Louisville, Kentucky one year when I heard a strange noise behind the car. The noise was my seminar book hitting the road(it had been left on the trunk of the car-apparently). I stopped the car, got out . . . and never did find it. Very puzzling.

I guess the information was so good from the Management Clinic that whoever immediately came behind, or saw it fly off the trunk-just had to snatch it up.

But I digress-this was a concept drawing for a stone grouping, plants and water. A Rick Anderson vignette . . . if you will.

So how 'bout it? Want me to build one for you-let me know. 

Sketchbook sampler

 
Just a little something from the sketchbook. I guess you would call it doodle time. 

Sketchbook Conceptuals

These are 3 quick study drawings of a project for a large living and playing space behind a two-story house addition. Overhead roof, 2 levels of patio space, a open area for a fire ring, and the other important spot-a step up into a spa.
Plan view and rendering on the same page of an 11x17 sketchbook. When the project becomes really complicated I invite the client along on the design process and will show them sketch ideas, scribbles on "trash" and any other thing to show them I was working through the problems on their desires to find a good solution.
Another look in a charcoal pencil, quick, fast rough, dirty . . . this is my design process. This enables me to never bog down in details and work on the big picture, without seeing how the spaces relate to each other in a good way . . . it doesn't matter what color the begonia's are. 

Skecthbook rendering

A rendering from a couple of years ago. Found this when I was going through a pile of stuff. I remember this drawing because the homeowner kept remarking on how they wanted a really spectacular view out the windows and wanted a great place to entertain.

The short of it was the contractor I drew this for did a poor job explaining the install process, along with the fact we were $35,000-$40,000 higher than the other guy looking at project. Even though there idea was not comparable.

The homeowners went the other way. Afterwards; maybe 3-4 weeks after completion I ran into the homeowner. His 1st words were "I made such a huge mistake" He was totally unhappy, and lamented on how he wishes he would have spent the extra money.

It's weird, because now as I look back on this I remember telling the contractor his final price was too low, maybe $12,000 or so. He agreed, but said he really wanted the job. My point is that money he cut off the bid was his profit and maybe more and he still didn't get it, actually saving him money in the final analysis.

I think you should bid the price you need to bid and stay in a healthy business situation and let those shopping on price alone live with their decision. Look for clients who value good work, sound design, quality materials and a philosophy that something that stands the test of time is of the highest value.