The architect’s drawing in revitalisation or renovation projects and their digitalization processes in the 21st century

Abstract

This article explores the importance of freehand drawing in the processes of architectural revitalisation and reconstruction, in the study of historical buildings and in the development of restoration strategies. The Latin verb revidere means ‘to see again’, ‘to re-examine’, or ‘to review’. In this study, drawing is understood as a means of ‘seeing again’ and ‘re-examining’ architectural heritage. One of the practices of the 21st century is adapting modern functional and technological requirements in reconstruction and renovation projects while simultaneously preserving cultural heritage. Architects redraw former project drawings with freehand sketches, generate ideas, study the historical context, apply new functions to existing elements and apply technologies to improve buildings. The study is based on a case study of two revitalisation projects and used observation and comparison methods in the project documentation of the Hanza perons and Riga Castle, and participatory observations in the development of ideas for an international revitalisation project BIP ReUso2025. The cultural and historical objects were selected because they were visited in person during the restoration process and during the architects’ excursions with direct experience stories in both cases. In order to gain a deeper understanding of the role of drawing in both objects, in September and October 2025, the Riga Construction Board studied the drawings of the Riga Castle and the Hanzas Perons, freehand drawings, site surveys and restoration documentation, BIM and CAD materials, historical photographs and digital models, and the oldest drawings of the Riga Castle in the Latvian State Archives, interpretations after J. K. Brotze (18 Century). The reliability of the study is based on direct semi-structured interviews with architects who were responsible for the restoration projects. To ensure the reliability of the results, methodological triangulation was used, comparing archival, interview, observation and project documentation data. The case study confirms the value of the architect’s sketch in conceptual design, development of restoration details and interpretation of the historical presence. The aim of the article is to show how freehand drawing contributes to the preservation of authenticity, interdisciplinary collaboration and design quality. At the same time, it should be noted that the analysed projects represent two samples of Latvian restoration practice, and the interpretation of the sketch is to some extent influenced by the professional experience of the researcher  and the context of the project. The discussion emphasizes that freehand drawing retains its significance  in the digital design environment when the architect conducts in-depth research.