The potential of observational hand-drawing in contemporary education (a case-study in architecture using Seymour Simmons’s drawing typology)

This paper aims to demonstrate the value of traditional observation hand-drawing as a contemporary teaching approach to develop skills such as creativity, problem-solving, critical thinking, empathy and cooperation. It is well known that drawing activity possesses unique cognitive characteristics that contribute to critical thought and problem-solving and can positively impact the emotional self. However, it is difficult to demonstrate that traditional observational hand-drawing applies in all these ways. On the contrary, there is an associated mistrust of observational drawing in the past, due to difficulties, for many students, in learning such skills capable of generating emotional distress, which in part justifies this research article. Another purpose is to explain the benefits of observational hand-drawing in fields dominated by digital media, like architecture. Using the example of the faculty of architecture at the University of Oporto, Portugal, where drawing from observation is successfully taught as an indispensable basis for pursuing a degree in architecture, we analysed the four types of exercises in its foundational programme of drawing study to inquire about which mental skills it mobilizes in students, using Seymour Simmon's model of drawing typology to frame the discussion. At the same time, we will provide a test board for his theory and argue that hand-drawing exclusively from observation in a teaching scenario facilitates the approach to complex subjects and trains crucial cognitive skills.