IN-PERSON London Heritages. Section B

Abstract

This presentation investigates the role of orthographic drawings as a critical tool for recording, understanding, and reimagining modern architectural heritage in the United Arab Emirates. Focusing on two key case studies, examples of desert modernism, the project reframes architectural documentation as an academic methodology and a design catalyst. Through field-based learning combined with digital technologies, the study explores how precise elevation drawings and other orthographic views can act as visual archives, preserving spatial narratives that are often at risk of disappearance due to rapid urban transformation. Conducted as a participatory pedagogical experiment at the intersection of adaptive reuse and immersive learning, the project integrates technical training in laser scanning, photogrammetry, BIM, and virtual reality. The pedagogy methodology applied in studio classes produced measured, high-resolution digital drawings that translate ephemeral and aging structures into legible visual records. These orthographic outputs serve as launchpads for speculative reuse, enabling new layers of meaning to emerge through analytical drawing and digital reconstruction. The process underscores the importance of drawing as a tool not only for representation but for cultural continuity. By abstracting buildings into line, form, and proportion, orthographic methods reveal latent logic in architecture that traditional photography or site visits might miss. The presentation situates drawing within a broader framework of digital heritage practices, proposing that re-engaging with manual and hybrid drawing traditions offers a powerful means to bridge the past and future. This dual focus on precision and speculation demonstrates how drawing becomes a critical agent in safeguarding and reactivating modern heritage.