The Working Drawing: The Architect's Tool

Large-scale working drawings are one of the fundamental tools in architecture, crucial from the early stages of creation up through the actual construction of buildings. Surprisingly, however, there has been very little published analysis of this tool. The Working Drawing fills that gap, drawing on a vast collection of working drawings held by the Department of Architecture of ETH Zurich.

Annette Spiro, who assembled and categorized the collection itself, here presents one hundred highlights, with the assistance of coeditor David Ganzoni. The drawings featured span more than five centuries, cover a range of architectural tasks, and display a striking array of representational techniques. All the drawings are presented in full-color via large-trim spreads or fold-outs, accompanied by full catalog information and actual-size detail shots. The buildings featured range from masterpieces such as St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome to contemporary classics by Peter Zumthor, Diller + Scofidio, and more. Twelve essays by renowned authors thread through the volume, giving context and analyzing the different approaches. The result is a landmark volume, sure to be of value both to students and to practicing architects.