Easy for me to say

The green building industry is innovative. That means the technology has not yet been implemented, or only in a pilot project. That is usually a very specific building. Tricky to show to a new customer. He would rather see his own future plans depicted.

This is how simple illustrations work for project development.

What you want to talk about hasn’t been built yet, so if you want to show something you end up with a fictional building. And when you do have a fake building, draw it in such a way that your components can show their full potential.
Also, you can draw it in a way that it fits a specific audience, with specific needs. Handy!

Why not realistic 3D?

You can draw super-realistic 3D these days, but then you run into higher costs, and – much more importantly – everything is too precise. You want to leave everything you don’t know (yet) – or which is distracting anyway – out. You can’t do that with precise drawings. Therefore, a simple drawing style is best. The result looks nice and clear; it is obvious that it is fictional.

Easy to talk about, and that’s what’s needed in your first talks with a new client.

 

simple illustrations for project development and urban planning

Drawing showing different types of sustainable roofing and the components used.

simple illustrations for project development and urban planning

Fictional building showing that green roofs can and should be considered at every stage: design, construction, construction and operation.

simple illustrations for project development and urban planning animations

Animation for Cityroofs/Zoontjens telling all about sustainable roofing solutions with five target groups combined with five building types. Click on the image to view the video in a new window, at Vimeo.

Well, simple illustrations for project development could not be simpler: provider and client talk about solutions, looking at a building. Text labels and subtitles provide further explanation.

Building the 3D parts of the animation is briefed with sketches and a round of corrections.

Fictional building to discuss exactly the aspects of a particular green roof. Kind of residential/shopping center with parking garage and herring cart (which became Vietnamese spring rolls in the final movie).

simple illustrations for project development and urban planning

simple illustration for project development and civil engineering

Schematic representation of obstructions in Zaandam, occurring during lock reconstruction. (For BAM via Roel Stavorinus)

klaas van der veen - maps and plans

Yes, you can make it as complicated as you want, and impress. But for conversation, a simple drawing is better.