Writing usually provides a sense of order in chaos, a feeling of calm in panic. For me it is just as much
a means of sorting and organizing my mind as a creative process. My intention in writing my current
book  Model-making: Materials and Methods was therefore just as much to ‘tell myself’ what I knew
about model-making before delivering it to other people. More details on the book can be found by
clicking on the image below.

Also included here are the outcomes of a research survey recently undertaken, funded by Rose Bruford
College and HEFCE, in which I have looked at student experiences of model-making at degree level.
My aim was to find out more about the technical and financial challenges students were experiencing
and to reflect on possible solutions. Throughout my teaching I have always promoted the model as a
necessary tool in the design process. When wisely used, model-making can instruct and liberate as
well as becoming the most effective and complete form of spatial communication with others. But in
reality, it can also become a hindrance and all too often the freedom of the design process can be
heavily influenced by what is technically achievable in the model. The survey builds upon what I have
experienced over the years as a tutor, canvasses the opinions of current students and compares with
contemporary professional practice.