Expressing Unique Perceptions of the World

If you're in a café and you want a drink you order one from the waiter or waitress. i.e. we express what we want with words, with language. Not all language is verbal of course. You could order a coffee by writing it, or drawing it or by acting it. We express ourselves according to the cultural norm. There is nothing wrong with this but I think, especially for design it is important to practice different forms of expression.

I have decided to start practicing to paint again. Art is important culturally, investigating it and understanding it can unveil many secrets which are not verbally documented. As an architect I want to be equipped with as many tools of expressing my design proposal as possible. We are used to conventional line drawings in architecture but why restrict ourselves?

Depicted above is about 4 hours worth of painting, I have documented the progression and will continue to do so over time until the painting is finished (by updating this blog post). The progression is more interesting to me than the final painting as it provides an expression of thought in motion. A finished painting is a static expression of what you think with no explanation - there is nothing wrong with that, it can be very powerful - but I am interested in creating as much of a dialogue as possible to provide evidence and explanation for the result achieved.

I don't particularly enjoy expressing myself through words. I think visually, therefore this form of expression is something I would like to expand upon as I explore the use of art to inform my kitchen design, architecture, and urban design.

"There's so much going on in the heads of the intellectually exceptional that they often find a means of expression beyond words, music, maths, sport, art or even clothing - because words, prose anyway, can only express one thing at a time" The Gentlewoman. Issue #9 [124]  An interview with Vivienne Westwood text by Deborah Orr