Architectural Doodling in Co-Design

When it comes to designing learning spaces, I am a big proponent of a participatory process called co-design. When I work at my own institution or outside clients, I strive to include as many stakeholders as possible.

There are a number of activities that help foster a design mindset and actively, genuinely listen to all stakeholders. One of my favorite activities is the group doodling activity that I’ve used for more than 10 years now. Essentially, I take a blueprint of a space (ideally one to be built or renovated), remove all features except for load-bearing walls in photoshop, and print out many copies. Bigger is usually better.

What happens next is hard to predict, and it depends on the group, the project, etc. But most often, people are doing this for the first time, and really get into the process. People draw anything from traditional row designs to extravagant spaces with ball pits and pools. But pretty quickly the group wisdom draws from everyone’s imagination and more concrete, feasible, creative, and sustainable designs emerge. The drawing (and writing) on paper enable participants to externalize their ideas, and provide a common form of expression that is often otherwise absent in lay designers.

In a pinch, blank pieces of paper work as well, but providing some unalterable boundaries help steer the design discussion into a particular direction. When we are done, I scan the produced work and share it with the group.

I’ll try to share some examples and more co-design activities in my next posts.