The Big Picture

thebigpicture3

Scale is a big word; there are lots of meanings-many of them designed-charged.   Overscaled can be good, fun, dramatic, compelling- or just plain theatrical.    Underscaled can ruin a beautifully bold idea before the shovel goes in the ground. Proper scale is classic.  This applies to landscapes, fashion, furniture, and rooms; I am sure I am forgetting many others.   When things are the right size, you instinctively know it. Any person could tell you if a portrait of a person is badly drawn-we all know faces, and their proportions, as we have had non-stop exposure to the human face. But most could not draw the human face unless they were taught.  Unless they learned about scale and proportion. The key idea here-some things can be learned, and can be used as a tool to get your design going somewhere.

thebigpicture2So, its a learned skill-to scale up a mortgage survey. A great tool is an engineers scale. It can measure lines in any multiple of 10. In 10 scale, this ruler has 10 short lines representing every inch.  I tick is one foot.  I like this scale-its easy for me to draw, to see, and to explain.  Take that survey to Kinkos, and get it blown up to 1″ equals 10′.  They will help you. Then I can help you.