Design & Sketching

July 3, 2020

‘Sketching’ is one of the most important tools for every designer- student as well as a professional. As a tool or a skill, sketching plays a vital role in the design process. That role will vary depending on the end-product being created, the size or scope of the project, the individual designer’s style, experience, workflow and the client’s expectations.

Sketching is an excellent way to quickly explore concepts. You can sketch for one or two hours and work out multiple possible solutions to the design problem on hand. Rigorous sketching is an essential step in the design process. It saves a lot of time to work through concepts on paper before going to the computer. Within the field of product design, the ability to represent your ideas by using effective visual methods such as sketching, opens doors for better communication between a designer and a client.

Designers have realized that using sketching for developing ideas in real life is the best way to speed up the design process more efficiently. If one is skilled at sketching and visualizing then one can also solve a lot of technical challenges which are encountered at the prototype development or manufacturing level. A good quality sketch can communicate all the major important attributes like size, scale, proportion, ergonomics, aesthetics and functionality. Thus, saving a lot of time for testing. So, I think every designer should keep on practicing product sketching to have a smooth flowing hand, keep the skill sharp and constantly improve it.

Author:
Robin Makvana, Associate Professor, LSA Department, Unitedworld Institute of Design (UID)

Disclaimer: The opinions / views expressed in this article are solely of the author in his / her individual capacity. They do not purport to reflect the opinions and/or views of the College and/or University or its members.