King’s Cross Gasholders (completion due 2016); Photo: Royal Academy of Arts; Photography:
John Bodkin, DawkinsColour
Chris Wilkinson RA King’s Cross Gasholders (completion due 2016); Photo: Royal Academy of Arts; Photography: John Bodkin, DawkinsColour

An architect’s sketchbook is a window into the designer’s mind. That is especially true for an upcoming exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts, in London, which will present the sketchbooks, drawings, and watercolor paintings from the last 30 years of London-based firm WilkinsonEyre founder and director Chris Wilkinson, Hon. FAIA’s career. An architect who still believes in the importance of drafting by hand, Wilkinson reveals his design process through the collection's works, which range from initial site studies and early observations to detailed development of WilkinsonEyre's projects such as the Mary Rose Museum in Portsmouth, U.K., Maggie’s Centre in Oxford, U.K., and the King’s Cross Gasholders in London.

The exhibition runs from Sept. 3, 2015 to Feb. 14, 2016. 

Mary Rose Museum, Portsmouth (completed 2013); Photo: Royal Academy of Arts; Photography:
John Bodkin, DawkinsColour
Chris Wilkinson RA Mary Rose Museum, Portsmouth (completed 2013); Photo: Royal Academy of Arts; Photography: John Bodkin, DawkinsColour

Crown Hotel, Sydney, Australia (completion due 2019); Photo Royal Academy of Arts; Photography:
John Bodkin, DawkinsColour
Chris Wilkinson RA Crown Hotel, Sydney, Australia (completion due 2019); Photo Royal Academy of Arts; Photography: John Bodkin, DawkinsColour

Stratford Depot, London (completed 1991); Photo Royal Academy of Arts; Photography:
John Bodkin, DawkinsColour
Chris Wilkinson RA Stratford Depot, London (completed 1991); Photo Royal Academy of Arts; Photography: John Bodkin, DawkinsColour

Chris Wilkinson’s sketchbooks; Photo: Royal Academy of Arts; Photography:
John Bodkin, DawkinsColour
Chris Wilkinson RA Chris Wilkinson’s sketchbooks; Photo: Royal Academy of Arts; Photography: John Bodkin, DawkinsColour