Visual representations are an inseparable part of disciplines like architecture and design, which deal with decisions about spatial creations. These representations are seen as effective and concise manifestations of the designer’s thoughts, ideas and decisions and act as a vehicle for communicating with the team.

Because of their ability to precisely capture and convey thoughts and decisions, visual representations are often called a designer’s language. Indeed, they do serve some of the functions of the natural language, for the professional groups who share the common codes, symbols and conventions of this language.

Designers tend to use the entire range of visual representations during the various phases of the design process. Often, the first understandable representation are the 3D perspectives and renderings, but the later representations need a more precise and formalized system of communication such as engineering drawings, orthographics, layouts and maps. The purpose as well as the nature and style of representation during this phase are clearly different than the later phases of the process, where precision in communication is emphasized. (McKim, 1972, p 40) These show a higher degree of abstraction and are also considerably more formal than early freehand perspective sketches and doodling of the ideation phases.

Early creative phase, often referred to as graphic ideation phase, involves extensive explorations of spatial arrangements and shapes and is full of doodling, thumbnail sketching and freehand perspectives. That is why most design schools teach sketching. Historically, these sketching programmes are based on art school sketching tradition, focused on correct representation of objects put in front of them.