Expressive Architectural Sketching by Albert Kiefer

This course is about ditching the ruler and having fun with a sketchbook. Albert Kiefer, aka Housesketcher, shows you how to capture buildings and cityscapes with energy and personality using nothing more than alcohol markers, fine liners, and a bit of courage. It’s a hands-on, no-pressure approach to drawing that focuses on expression over perfection.

🎯 What you’ll learn

• Create expressive architectural sketches with loose linework and bold color.
• Understand basic perspective and how to use it freely.
• Layer alcohol markers to build volume and atmosphere.
• Find inspiration in everyday buildings and turn them into art.

✅ Requirements

• Skills: No previous experience required.
• Tools: Alcohol-based colored markers, waterproof black fine liners, white acrylic highlighter, a good sketchbook.

📝 Description

Albert Kiefer spent years doing precise 3D visualization work. One day, he picked up a marker and decided to stop caring about straight lines. That’s the spirit of this course. It’s not about photorealistic renderings—it’s about capturing the feeling of a place.

You’ll start with simple warm-ups to loosen your hand, then move into the basics of perspective and color theory. The real fun begins when you pick a reference photo and start sketching. Albert walks you through his entire process: from finding a good composition and doing quick thumbnails, to laying down the black ink foundation and then layering on color with markers. He also shows you how to add final touches with a white highlighter for contrast and pop.

The whole thing is built around the idea that a sketchbook is a playground. You’ll learn to embrace mistakes, work fast, and develop a style that’s uniquely yours.

🧑‍🎓 Who this course is for

• Anyone who wants to learn to sketch buildings in a quick and expressive way.
• Artists looking to break out of rigid, realistic drawing habits.
• Beginners with no prior drawing experience who want a fun, low-stakes start.

🧑‍🏫 About the Author

Albert Kiefer is a digital visualization artist with over 35 years of experience. After studying drawing and art history at the Maastricht Institute of Arts, he worked in computer graphics, mastering 3D modeling and rendering. He now works as a freelancer, but his true passion is traditional sketching. Under the name Housesketcher, he shares his vibrant, loose architectural drawings online. He has published a sketch collection called Au Japon! and created workshop videos for Gerstaecker.

🏁 Final Result

• A finished, expressive sketch of a building with playful linework, volume, and lots of color.