SKETCHING

These sketches were started in 1984, during my first backpacking trip to Europe. Stopping at all the major cities and architectural sites, following the historical example of architects traveling and sketching after completing one’s studies. As much as time allows, whenever I have traveled since, sketching has become a natural activity of my journey’s discovery and memory. I begin the sketch on site, spending one to two hours, then photographing the view I am sketching and continuing to sketch while on the road. Waiting in lines, and the next transportation means sketching has been a productive and fulfilling way to pass the time recalling the beauty of each building I've encountered on the journey. 

PURPOSE

The sketches are for sale to raise funds for a scholarship for an architecture student at East Los Angeles College, ELAC, where I teach design and drawing. The entire scholarship fund will be awarded every June at the Scholarship Luncheon to one deserving student to encourage them to continue their studies in architecture. A high quality reproduction is for sale at $75.00. If you're interested contact me at alexis@alexisnavarro.com

ARCHITECTURE

To appreciate architecture on one level, is to have some understanding of how the vision of one person’s creativity and the labor of craftsmen, tell a story, not just the individual but also the story of a civilization and its cultural imprint in the world. The architecture here, represents some of the values that express the history of Western civilization. These buildings also shape us in that they are embedded in the recesses of our personal and collective memory and serve as a reminder of who we are as individuals and how are lives have unfolded in their presence. Sharing these allow me to retell not only my experiences but also the joy in witnessing the creativity of the human spirit through architecture.