Pens, Markers, and the City: Exploring Tools for Urban Sketching

Drawing remains one of the most powerful tools for thinking about cities. Whether sketching a street section, exploring a design idea, or quickly communicating spatial relationships, drawing allows planners and urban designers to see, test, and communicate ideas in ways that digital tools often cannot.

This StudioKit session offers a hands-on exploration of drawing tools and materials used in urban design and planning practice. Participants will experiment with a range of pens, markers, pencils, and papers to build familiarity and confidence with different tools and techniques.

The session is designed as a practical, interactive workshop where participants can compare tools side-by-side and understand their strengths, limitations, and potential applications. Through a series of guided exercises, we will explore how different materials behave and how they can be used effectively in sketching and visual thinking.

Topics and exercises will include:

• Understanding the characteristics of different drawing tools
• Line variation and expressive mark-making
• Shading and hatching techniques
• Marker application and layering
• Working with paper types and avoiding bleed-through
• Drawing quickly to capture spatial ideas and urban form

Along the way, we’ll share practical tips for incorporating hand drawing into graphic facilitation, city planning, and urband design workflows, whether for communication with colleagues and communities.

The session is also an opportunity to connect with others in the field, exchange ideas, and experiment with tools you may want to incorporate into your own practice.

Participants are encouraged to bring their favourite drawing tool, and sketchbook(s) to work with and share during the session.

Info: 
Overview of the workshop, drawing in planning and urban design practice, and introduction to materials.

Info: Hands-on comparison of different drawing tools (pens, markers, pencils, paper types, mixed media). Discussion of how different tools behave.

Info: Participants test tools through short exercises focused on: line variation, shading and hatching, marker layering, expressive mark-making using different mediums and papers.

Info: Short exercises focused on drawing urban elements such as streets, buildings, or public spaces.

Info: Participants share insights, favourite tools, and techniques together

Info: Key takeaways and suggestions for incorporating drawing into practice.

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Host or Publisher StudioKit