Blog Post Week 11
This week, I had the opportunity to work on the Ivanhoe Grammar School Aquatic and Recreational Centre (on the Plenty Campus). My main task was to simplify complex schematic drawings into artistic representations for a competition submission. I was fortunate to work under the guidance of Socrati Seretis and Alex Davies from Peddle Thorp Architects, whose insights were incredibly valuable.
The workflow involved exporting drawings from Revit, simplifying the linework in Rhino, and then creatively enhancing them in Illustrator—making extensive use of grouping and layers to manage complexity and visual clarity.
One of the key learnings from Soc was the importance of clean, minimal drawings. A simplified drawing allows viewers to more easily understand the design intent. By pulling back the detail and using white space strategically, the quality and spatial relationships of the design became much clearer.
Another important insight was how to distinguish more clearly between building elements, like walls and windows. This can be achieved through a greater contrast in line weight and color. Similarly, when working with elevations, we used three visual planes—foreground, middle ground, and background—to add a sense of perspective within a 2D drawing. Varying line weights for each layer helped reinforce this hierarchy.
Socrati and Alex encouraged me see these drawings as artwork. This is their hero project, and I felt genuinely honoured to contribute to its visual storytelling.
On another note, this week also marked Alisha’s last week with us. We went out for one last lunch all together (absolutely delicious banh mi) to celebrate the progress we’ve all made across the Peddle Thorp, HSPC, and SBE projects. It’s been such a pleasure working alongside Alisha, and I’m really grateful for her support—especially when I needed guidance navigating tricky tasks.