20 Beautiful Axonometric Drawings of Iconic Buildings

Written by Martita Vial | Translated by Danae Santibañez
Published on March 12, 2017

Architect and illustrator Diego Inzunza has created a new series titled "Architectural Classics," which presents and analyzes 20 iconic architectural works from the 20th-century. Using a graphic technique based upon axonometric views, the style allows each building to be seen from multiple sides, creating a comprehensive overall interpretation of the architecture.

In the following interview, Inzunza shares with us a little more about his creative process:

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Why did you choose to use axonometric views?

DI: The axonometric view is a very valuable tool because it is the visual nexus between the technical image produced by an architect, and an understandable image for clients, or in this case, observers. Guided by exact geometric rules and at the same time with a more comprehensible visualization to the untrained eye in technical plan readings, it is possible to understand an isometric image very easily and at the same time maintain the proportion and scale perfectly aligned with the projected measurements.

20 Beautiful Axonometric Drawings of Iconic Buildings - Image 19 of 20 — Casa Koshino / Tadao Ando / 1984. Image Cortesía de Diego Inzunza - Estudio Rosamente

20 Beautiful Axonometric Drawings of Iconic Buildings - Image 2 of 20 — Casa Gropius / Walter Gropius + Marcel Breuer / 1938 . Image Cortesía de Diego Inzunza - Estudio Rosamente

What graphic references currently inspire you?

DI: At the moment, my major graphic inspiration is the work of the Spanish illustrator Cinta Vidal. She mixes the isometric visualization along with perspectives of two points to create hallucinating images of houses, daily objects and people emplaced in impossible geometries, emulating to which the great master M.C. Escher made decades ago.

The other artist is Josh Keyes, who with his animal world isometrics creates curiously architectural works about man's footprint in the world.

20 Beautiful Axonometric Drawings of Iconic Buildings - Image 11 of 20 — Casa Melnikov / Konstantin Melnikov / 1929. Image Cortesía de Diego Inzunza - Estudio Rosamente

How would you describe your workflow? (From the selection of what to draw, until the drawing is finished).

DI: My work process always starts by looking at different books and also the web. Then I make a list of the works that I feel are relevant to highlight and I restrict them to a few basic laws, in this case, the isometric view and the analogous color illustration. Each illustration is sketched by hand and corroborated with geometric proportions. Then the image is drawn in ink and finished with professional illustration pens. When finished, the image is scanned and cropped according to the setting that best fits it.

20 Beautiful Axonometric Drawings of Iconic Buildings - Image 7 of 20 — Museo Casa Estudio Diego Rivera y Frida Kahlo / Juan O´Gorman / 1931 . Image Cortesía de Diego Inzunza - Estudio Rosamente

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What advantages do you see in drawing by hand?

DI: Hand drawing is practical and effective. It allows us to capture not only what is in front of our eyes, but also what is in our thoughts. Whether it's a pencil, a pen, a chalk, or a branch, the simplicity of this act makes us understand everything that was, what it is, and what it will be. The digital tools are wonderful and they achieve scenes and products that were previously simply inconceivable for our ancestors.
However, I am still convinced that it has not yet been created a more efficient and rapid method of translating ideas and transmitting human imagination than simple strokes in a paper.