The hand leading the mind : materialising the invisible

Abstract

Sketches, being free and affording expression are amongst the best tools one can use during the fluidity of the preconcept. Being ambiguous, imaginative, and curious, sketches provoke their creator to take leaps further from their initial thoughts whilst materialising their thought process in paper. The creative journey is impregnated with feedback loops reflecting the dialogue between hand, mind, eyes, and paper, forming a discovery through the sense of embodiment of the natural and imaginative environments. This journey materialises concepts through the lines, hatches, and crevices of the sketch, which allow provocation for one to see beyond the paper and leap. The aspect of ideation forms the essence of this journey as the key to developing and testing ideas further than the first mental image. This journey was materialised with the help of experienced architects by holding semi structured interviews involving dialogue and sketching. Using Protocol Analysis, the hand and the mind were mapped out simultaneously, resulting in four categories indicative of the challenges occurring between hand and mind. Resulting in the materialisation and vivid depiction of the difference between hand-led or mind-led thought processes, it can be said that the sketch is one of the most important tools in the architect’s toolbox.