Architectural Lettering: How To Write Like An Architect

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ARCHITECTURAL LETTERING How to Write Like an Architect

30X40 Design Workshop © 2020

HOW TO WRITE LIKE AN ARCHITECT

Essential Tools

Kuru Toga 0.5 mm mechanical pencil HB lead

Sharpie Ultra Fine Point Felt tip marker (fine nib) Black

Pentel Sign Pen Felt tip marker (broad nib) Black

Our handwriting is an extension of our personal visual style and even though much of our work is done digitally, architects still communicate through our sketches + annotations. Text can be a strong graphic compositional element in our work too so developing a handwriting style which complements your line work is a worthy investment for any creative.

WRITING IMPLEMENTS: Pen – Sharpie Ultra Fine Point Pencil – Kuru Toga Felt tip pen - Pentel Sign Pen

30X40 Design Workshop © 2020

HOW TO WRITE LIKE AN ARCHITECT

Media Options I recommend starting with a roll of tracing paper which is very similar to the ‘onion skin’ animators historically used for character animation. Architects use ‘trace’ every day in the studio for sketching iterations of design ideas relatively quickly without having to redraw the base drawing each time. For writing exercises translucent media allows you to easily see the letterforms below.

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Roll of Trace - 12” X 50YD

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Lettering Worksheets (see download)

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iPad (I like Procreate)

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Sketchbook - great for practicing. BLANK sketchbook

Procreate / iPad

Bienfang White Trace

30X40 Design Workshop © 2020

HOW TO WRITE LIKE AN ARCHITECT

Style Characteristics 1. Strive for legible, clear + consistent letterforms. 2. Begin at the top of the letterform with a downstroke.

Downstroke first

Verticals

3. Use uppercase only. 4. Vertical strokes should be vertical + horizontal strokes should have a slight upward tilt.

Slight upward tilt

5. Overlap lines slightly at corners. This forms a precise letter + helps with speed. 6. Use the third points to locate horizontal intersections.

Overlap corners 1/3 points

Practice, (Practice, Practice): 1. Always use guidelines when practicing: printed underlays (or) construct your own. 2. Start small: space guidelines between 1/8” 3/16” for best results.

Square Proportions

3. Begin at the top of the letterform, use down strokes to create the verticals first. 4. Continue to horizontals next, imparting a slight upward angle where appropriate. 5. Proportions should be (roughly) square. 30X40 Design Workshop © 2020

NEED MORE HELP?

Additional Resources Thanks for downloading the worksheets, I hope they help you to develop your own architectural handwriting style. For a peek inside my architecture studio and to learn more about the life and tools of an architect be sure to check out the links below.

Architectural Resources • • • • •

Tutorials Studio tour Tools + techniques Video + blog post links Favorite architecture books, monographs + references texts

Digital Drawing Templates • • •

My custom drawing templates Ready to use styling Revit 2019 + AutoCAD versions available

Startup Toolkit • • •

All the tools I use to run 30X40 Design Workshop Templates, swipe files, checklists, documents Start your design practice with the right foundation

30X40’s Procreate Pack • • • •

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Custom grids Custom brushes Custom color palettes Custom canvases

30X40 Design Workshop © 2020