Book Launch: Bodies and Space in Architectural Drawing

Celebrate the launch of Bodies and Space in Architectural Drawing: Line, Movement, Scale by Marian Macken and Carl Douglas, a new book exploring the relationship between architectural drawing, the human body and the spaces we inhabit. The launch begins with drinks and doors opening at 5.30pm, followed by speeches at 6pm at Objectspace’s Ockham Gallery in Ponsonby. Rather than treating architectural drawings as representations viewed from a distance, Macken and Douglas explore drawing as a physical, spatial and performative practice. Their book considers how architects imagine, experience and shape space through drawing, placing the moving body at the centre of the design process. The authors examine full-scale and performative approaches to drawing, where drawings can be inhabited and experienced rather than simply observed. They also explore the role of models, maps and other scaled artefacts as tools that help architects think about space, time and movement. Bodies and Space in Architectural Drawing brings together architectural practice, research and design thinking to reconsider what architectural drawing can be and how it can shape our understanding of space. Marian Macken is Associate Professor at Te Pare School of Architecture and Planning at Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland. Her research and creative practice focus on architectural drawing, time and architecture, and design pedagogy. Her previous books include Binding Space: The Book as Spatial Practice and Our Concealed Ballast. Carl Douglas is Senior Lecturer in the School of Art and Design at Auckland University of Technology. His research explores architectural drawing and imaging, material imagination and speculative design. His work has examined subjects including scale, LiDAR scanning and the informal street architecture of the Paris Commune. Published by Bloomsbury Publishing, the book is presented as a contribution to architectural thinking about drawing, scale, embodiment and spatial practice. The launch is presented in partnership with Objectspace and Te Kāhui Whaihanga New Zealand Institute of Architects Auckland Branch as part of the 2026 Aotearoa Festival of Architecture. Event details 📍 Objectspace, Ockham Gallery, Ground Floor, 13 Rose Road, Ponsonby, Auckland 🕠 Doors and drinks: 5.30pm 🎤 Speeches: 6pm 📅 Part of the 2026 Aotearoa Festival of Architecture