Congratulations to CED Lecturer Cameron Berglund on receiving an Observational Award of Excellence in the American Society of Architectural Illustrators (ASAI) Architecture in Perspective 40 competition!
The annual competition, now in its 40th year, is a juried competition that recognizes the world’s best architectural illustrations. Berglund received the award for his plein-air painting of Mayan city ruins in Tikal National Park in Guatemala last summer.
“I have been referencing and gaining inspiration from the ASAI since I first started practicing landscape architecture,” said Berglund. “I have submitted to the AIP contest for numerous years and am excited to finally be included in it this year. I am especially honored that it was one of my plein-air site sketches that was selected, since this is my favorite method of creating my work.”
The painting took about an hour to create. After arriving on site, Berglund selected the Jaquar Temple (Templo del Gran Jaguar) as the perspective he wanted to capture. Starting with ink, he first sketched the perspective before adding color. The final painting is 6 by 12 inches on watercolor paper.
“The Jaguar Temple is one of the most stunning temples in all of Tikal and I had scouted this view earlier in the day with the hopes of returning to capture It in a sketch,” said Berglund. “One of my favorite parts of this vantage point is its ability to show the grand size of this temple compared to the ant-like visitors.”
At the CED, Berglund teaches landscape architecture studios, service-learning studios and leads the Tanzania Maymester program. He also hosts AthSketch, a weekly gathering of urban sketchers that meets to sketch on site on campus and around Athens.
“Site sketching forces and allows you to actually see a site– its proportions, scale, and special relationships– far more than if you simply take a picture of it,” said Berglund. “As spatial designers, learning to interpret and explore a site in this way is invaluable.”
This year, the contest’s theme was “Craft re-Focused. Art of Intent.” The theme asked contributors to consider what the words “craft” and “intent” mean in architectural art, especially in the age of AI.
“Even with AI and computer graphics, being able to study and explore design ideas by hand is paramount in our profession,” said Berglund. “Doing regular site sketching keeps my hand loose and engaged, while also sharpening my ability to graphically convey my ideas.”
See the full list of winners at https://asai.org/architecture-in-perspective-40/
