Drawing for Product Designers

Paperback
350 illustrations
208 pages
280 x 216 mm
ISBN 9781856697439
Published August 2012

With its tutorial-based approach, this is a practical guide to both hand- and computer-drawn design. Readers will learn to think three-dimensionally and build complex design ideas that are structurally sound and visually clear.

The book also illustrates how these basic skills underpin the use of computer-aided design and graphic software. While these applications assist the designer in creating physical products, architectural spaces and virtual interfaces, a basic knowledge of sketching and drawing allows the designer to fully exploit the software.

Foundational chapters show how these technical skills fit into a deeper and more intuitive feeling for visualisation and representation, while featured case studies of leading designers, artists and architects illustrate the full range of different drawing options available.

Hundreds of hand-drawn sketches and computer models have been specially created to demonstrate critical geometry and show how to build on basic forms and exploit principles of perspective to develop sketches into finished illustrations. There's also advice on establishing context, shading and realizing more complex forms.

About the Author

Kevin Henry is Professor at Columbia College in Chicago where he is coordinator of the Art and Design Department’s Product Design programme. He is also an independent design consultant and an award-winning furniture designer. Kevin has interviewed leading designers such as Petra Blaisse and Konstantin Grcic and is a regular speaker on both furniture and design.

Customer Reviews

Effectively teaches an essential skill Review by Scott Wilson, Founder of MINIMAL

Rating

Ideas are worthless without execution. Visual thinking is essential to communicating your idea and the first step towards transforming an idea into reality. Drawing for Product Designers will effectively teach today’s generation of designers this essential skill. (Posted on 12/5/12)

Inspiring and reassuring Review by Allan Chochinov, Editor in Chief, Core77; Chair, SVA MFA Products of Design

Rating

'This book covers an extraordinary breadth of technique, strategy and history—but perhaps its best quality is reassurance: Virtually every page comes across as fundamental and attainable. Readers will gain knowledge and confidence, inspired by leading practitioners and enthusiasts of the craft.' (Posted on 12/5/12)

Brilliant book Review by Don Norman, Nielsen Norman group, Author of Design of Everyday Things and Living with Complexity

Rating

'I thought I would peek at the first few pages --- but then I was hooked: I couldn't stop. I ended up looking at the entire book, wishing I had a real, printed copy so I could study it more carefully. Brilliant. This is not a how-to book. It is a why & how book. Why designers sketch, how they sketch, and most importantly of all, how designers think through through the medium of sketches. As I said, brilliant, readable, enjoyable, and a great learning experience.' (Posted on 12/5/12)

Thorough and comprehensive Review by Prasad Boradkar, Associate Professor, Arizona State University

Rating

'This thorough and comprehensive book makes it very clear that drawing is more than visual representation of ideas; it is a form of thinking that is critical to the design mind. Heavily illustrated with classic and contemporary products, organic and geometric forms, as well as analytical explanations and step-by-step guidelines, this text is an extremely useful resource for all students of design.' (Posted on 12/5/12)

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Introduction
Why read this book?
Using this book.

Chapter 1: Understanding Sketching / The natural ambiguity of lines / Why sketching in an age of computing? / Milestones in the evolution of drawing.

Chapter 2: The Psychology of Sketching / The psychology of vision / The mechanics of vision: several theories / Drawing on both sides of the brain / Recognizing things
Ambiguity / The power of context

Chapter 3: Defining Sketching / Sketching: a definition / Sketching as a form of visual thinking / Diagramming is sketching and drawing / Natural mark making: a precedent for drawing / The first convention: plan view / The power of drawing conventions / The grid: flat space / The raster grid / The mechanics of vision: eyes and camera lenses / Case study: HLB design diagrams / Case study: Understanding comics / Tutorial: Orthographic projection / Tutorial: Bending planar surfaces / Tutorial: Creating a mind map

Chapter 4: Orientation / Orientation, direction and point of view / Projection is king / Understanding geometry / The interrelationship between drawing systems / Case study: Rietveld / Tutorial: Sketching the red and blue stool / Tutorial: Rotated plan method / Tutorial: Gridding a planar surface / Case Study: Method / Tutorial: Deconstructing the cube

Chapter 5: Registration / The traditional glass box metaphor: seeing through the object / The scaffold metaphor: building objects and space on the fly / The section: conceptual pivot point for building form / Circles in perspective: the ellipse / Case study: Myto chair / Case study: Mission Motorcycle / Tutorial: Sketching a jewel case / Tutorial: Sketching Natao Fukasawa’s CD player

Chapter 6: Form / The Cartesian grid reconsidered / Shape morphologies: subtractive, additive and composite / Sketching and computer aided design / Warping: compound curvature and 3D sketching / Wireframes / Building on the fly: sketching outside the box / Case study: TCV Display for Olivetti / Tutorial: Sketching a contoured bar of soap / Tutorial: Sketching the Pringle potato chip / Tutorial: Composite methods for form creation / Tutorial: Sketching athletic shoes

Chapter 7: Line / Clarifying meaning through line weight / Line 1: Chasing the ghost lines / Line 2: The boldness of the outline / Line 3: The functional beauty of the contour / Line 4: The technical line / Line 5: Deep space – the vignette / Line 6: The emotional line / Line 7: Reinforcing depth through hatch lines / Letting line reinforce the story / Case study: Fiskars pruner / Case study: DC25 Vacuum / Case study: Vessel Ideation / Tutorial: Putting it all together

Chapter 8: Exploring forms in space / Geometry creation: from analog to digital / Extrusion / Sphere Cylinder / Cone/Truncated cone / Ellipsoid / Tube/extrude / Pipe/Loft / Case study: Panton chair / Case study: Vallo watering can / Tutorial: Sketching furniture / Tutorial: Sketching tools

Chapter 9: Explaining forms in space / The power of color / The psychology of color and light perception / Let there be light: direction and materiality / Light’s impact on form: value change and geometry / Understanding reflectivity / Rendering digitally / Referencing the body: the power of context / Section, partial section and details / Tutorial: Sketching hand positions / Tutorial: Rendering simple shapes / Tutorial: Rendering complex shapes / Case study: Fiskars garden barrow

Chapter 10: Exploring forms in time / The anatomy and logic of the exploded view / What is articulation? / Arrow: a flexible tool for direction and articulation / Arrows: a taxonomy / Sequencing time in flat space / Sequencing of process in flat space / The storyboard / Case study: Dyson DC25 user’s manual / Case study: Golden Section: Info Graphics / Case study: Cooper concept / Tutorial: Creating a storyboard / Tutorial: Sketching a cell phone

Chapter 11: Putting it all together / Basic anatomy / The power of composition / Physical constraints / Composition on the micro level
Summary / Case study: Astro Studios / Case study: FROG Ecotality Presentation