How Can I Become an Architectural Illustrator?

Discover how you can train as an architectural illustrator and show what a project will look like using drawing

According to architect and architectural illustrator Hector Lopez (@_thearchitector), the role of an architectural illustrator is to create visual representations of a structure, ranging from the smallest detail to a complete building or a block of buildings.

In general, an architectural illustrator works in collaboration with an architect to visually present plans and help them understand how a project will look when it’s finished. These drawings are used to show the project to a team, to sell it to potential inhabitants, or to present its features. What does it take to become an architectural illustrator?

Training in Technical Drawing

Often architectural illustrators are also architects. However, if this is not the case for you, you will need to specialize in technical drawing. Technical drawing is a particular branch of illustration that allows you to provide useful information for potential analysis.

This type of drawing is extremely important because it allows you to accurately and clearly present the dimensions, shapes, and characteristics of material objects. It also provides you with the necessary knowledge to work on the four standard views used in architectural illustration: floor plan, cross-section, facade, and perspective.

Technical vs. Artistic

Technical drawing is often seen as the opposite of artistic drawing. While the latter aims to express personal emotions or sensations, influenced by one’s own imagination and individual experiences, technical drawing aims to be objective and represent objects as accurately as possible.

However, some experts like Fernando Neyra Moreta (@fn23grafica) do not see these styles as contradictory but as complementary. After all, given that the intention of an architectural drawing is to sell, adding artistic, fantastical, and intriguing scenes around an accurate depiction will make it more emotive and human and thus more effective.

Mastering Digital Tools

Nowadays, architectural illustrators, in addition to knowing how to create technical drawings, must develop digital techniques for creating visual representations. The most commonly used programs for this type of illustrations are:

-FreeCAD
-SketchUp
-Dynamo Studio
-Blender
-Autocad
-Rhino

Using such software, you can model the structural elements and add details such as furniture, configure and apply textures that represent the materials of the house, and make basic configurations to render different views.

Thanks to these programs, you can apply very specific details such as garden decorations, neighborhood features, and funny situations that help make the work look as real as possible.

Want to know more about architectural illustration? Architect and illustrator Fernando Neyra Moreta will guide you into this world in his course, Digital Illustration of Architectural Projects.

English version by @eloiseedgington.

You may also like:

–What Is Architectural Perspective, and How Do I Use It in Drawing?
–10 Architectural Illustrators to Follow And Get Inspired in 2021
–What is Architectural Illustration?