Architect Rafael Sousa Santos' PhD Public Exam will be held on Wednesday 15th January 2025 at 15:00 in Sala Plana, FAUP.

The thesis is entitled ‘Traces of gestures: The resources of freehand drawing in architectural design teaching’.

Abstract

Architecture education has been affected in recent decades by the growing use of digital tools. Computerized processes have become a standard practice in architectural design and are now considered essential in the training of new architects. However, the digitalization of the design process has raised questions about the relevance of traditional forms of representation, such as hand drawing, and their place in architectural education. Although conventional drawing continues to be a requirement in some curricula, there has been a progressive disappearance of this practice in architecture schools, raising the question: is drawing still relevant in design education?

This thesis examines how drawing is currently used within design. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected through direct observation in three case studies—the Faculty of Architecture at the University of Porto, the Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica e Ingegneria delle Costruzioni at the Politecnico di Milano, and the School of Architecture and Planning at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology—and processed through thematic analysis. The results allow us to frame the role that drawing, whether conventional or digital, continues to play as a design tool and as a means of interaction between students and instructors, as well as to explore future perspectives for its integration into design education.

Jury
Doutor Vítor Manuel Oliveira da Silva (Presidente)
Professor Catedrático da Faculdade de Arquitectura da Universidade do Porto 

Doutor Angelo Lorenzi
Professor Associado do Politécnico de Milão, Itália

Doutora Maria Manuel Lobo Pinto de Oliveira
Professora Associada com Agregação Aposentada da Universidade do Minho

Doutor Pedro Miguel Hernandez Salvador Guilherme
Professor Auxiliar da Universidade de Évora

Doutor José Manuel Teixeira Barbosa
Professor Auxiliar da Faculdade de Arquitectura da Universidade do Porto

Doutora Maria Clara de Carvalho Pimenta do Vale
Professora Associada da Faculdade de Arquitectura da Universidade do Porto

Guidance Team

Clara Vale (FAUP)

Barbara Bogoni (POLIMI)

Poul Henning Kirkegaard (Aarhus University)

The research was carried out in the context of the European Doctorate, with a period of mobility at the Politecnico di Milano, supported by the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT). In addition, there was a period of mobility at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), with the support of the Fulbright Commission’.