Don’t get me wrong. I still teach sketching classes, but the format has changed drastically and I hardly ever use the chalkboard anymore. However, sketching on a chalkboard was a magical and highly satisfying experience that I enjoyed doing very much!

First of all because of the scale. When demonstrating a technique or explaining a principle, the sketches on the board need to be visible and legible all the way from the back of the class. Therefore, you need to make these sketches a lot bigger than when sketching on paper. Drawing at this scale requires you to sketch almost every line from your shoulder. Using the bigger motor skill makes sketching an even more physical activity allowing for gestural movements that carry feeling and transmit emotion.

I also enjoyed using chalk. Especially white chalk on a dark green board which is almost the opposite of using a black pen on white paper. It feels a bit like drawing a photo negative (for those who still remember using film rolls). You can also easily vary the line weight, nicely building up the contrast and even add a few sparkling highlights to your sketch to make it come alive.

To some this may sound or look like art. I don’t see it that way, although there is some artistic quality involved, these sketches serve a different purpose. Some are explanatory (a.e. this is how you draw a cylinder) and others are inspirational (a.e. this is how you can explore the design).

Obviously, all the sketches I do in class are instructional however, my aim is for my students to develop their skill to the point that they can use their own hands as tools to design with. So that is also what I need to demonstrate in class: exploratory sketching—sketching to learn!

Most of my sketches are exploratory sketches—I investigate the potential and the consequences of thoughts or ideas: “what would happen if I try this?”.

The moment I gain valuable insight, I have reached my goal and the sketch itself will merely become an artefact of my thought process. At most I can use it as reference for CAD modelling or to explain my design to someone else, but beyond that it has no purpose or value anymore in my design process.

I usually archive my paper sketches in physical folders, but that’s not really an option when using a chalkboard. So I take some pictures and that’s that. Sometimes, when I am in luck, I can witness a confused genitor wiping the board clean with a wet sponge. 😄