The role of emotions in drawing education and urban exploration

This research explores a new approach to teaching drawing in higher education. In Italian Architecture and Design programs, drawing is often perceived as highly technical, leading to low student engagement. This experiment, involving over 200 students worldwide, aimed to move beyond traditional classrooms, using drawing as a tool for urban exploration and emotional expression. Emphasis was placed on feelings and environmental perception rather than technical accuracy, fostering international academic exchanges and a more spontaneous study of cities. The P.A.T.H.O.S. project (Perception of Architecture, Territory, and Heritage. Observation and Sensation) engaged students as creators, observers, and judges. Initially, 18 students from the Universities of Pisa and Genoa participated, later expanding to over 180 students from all over the world. Students selected city areas to depict based on assigned emotions (joy, calmness, sadness, or anxiety), using any artistic technique. They could accompany their work with descriptive text or keywords. Brief lectures on psychology and neuroscience preceded the workshops. An online test was conducted, where the public matched emotions to drawings. With over 220 participants, the test showed that test takers were able to 90% correctly identified emotions in drawings, demonstrating the effectiveness of the approach. Struggling students improved their performance, and international students appreciated the emotional and spontaneous urban exploration. As a first-year experiment, further analysis is ongoing. However, the project showed high student engagement and positive feedback. The project encouraged cultural exchange and discussions on urban perception, integrating psychology, neuroscience, and sociology into drawing courses for the first time.