1. Architectural Diagrams
THE CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK
New York City College of Technology
Architectural Technology Department
Diagramming
written by Joshua Garcia
January 19, 2021

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This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation
under Grant Numbers 1141234.
Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this
material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the
National Science Foundation.

3. Architectural Diagrams
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What is Diagramming?
An architectural diagram is a diagram of a sys-
tem that is used to outline of the relationships,
constraints, and boundaries between two or more
components. It is an important tool as it provides
an overall view of the project.
Architectural diagrams also clarify a building,
relationships between elements of a building, or a
process connected to the building. They have no
unified appearance but they help convey difficult
concepts into easy to understand images.
Purpose of Diagramming
To allow relevant users to understand an architec-
tural system and follow it in their decision-making.
An architectural diagram needs to display these
three concepts:
Break down communication barriers
Reach a central understanding
Remove confusion
Fig. 1 -What is Diagramming? Fig. 2 -Purpose of Diagramming

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Fig. 7 -Development View
Fig. 6 -Process View
Fig. 5 -Physical View
Fig. 4 -Logical View
Fig. 3 -Scenario View
Architectural Diagrams
Type of Diagrams
Many careers and companies use diagrams to
help the workflow within their office. Even though
Architectural Diagrams falls within one of these
categories, knowing other forms may help provide
a better understanding with your workspace.
Some of these Diagrams include:
Scenario View (Fig. 3)
Logical View (Fig. 4)
Physical View (Fig. 5)
Process View (Fig. 6)
Development View (Fig. 7)

5. Architectural Diagrams
Fig. 13 -Circulation
Fig. 12 -Contextual
Fig. 11 -Programmatic
Fig. 10 -Axonometric
Fig. 9 -Sectional
Fig. 8 -Planimetric
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Types of Architectural Diagrams
Planimetric (Fig. 8)
As the name suggests, planimetric diagrams show
plans/views of buildings or elements of buildings as
seen from above. However, they differ from actual
plans in that they are representational only, without
precise scales or dimensions.
Sectional (Fig. 9)
Sectional diagrams show the interior details of a
building by ‘slicing’ through it vertically. Again,
similar to Planimetric diagrams, these diagrams
simply represent the building and cannot be used
as instructions.
Axonometric (Fig. 10)
This kind of diagram shows an exterior view,
mainly focusing on two sides of the same building.
Axonometric diagrams are often used to show
design concepts as a whole, and describe the
process behind them.
Programmatic (Fig. 11)
A programmatic diagram shows the layout of a
building and how people will actually use it.
Contextual (Fig. 12)
Contextual diagrams can appear sometimes as
abstract, as their function is to show how a building
relates with other structures within their area.
These diagrams often contain less detail than
others, but are important in describing a project’s
surroundings.
Circulation (Fig. 13)
Circulation diagrams shows the movement of users
around a space.

6. Architectural Diagrams
Fig. 19 -Visual Field
Fig. 18 -Euclidian
Fig. 17 -Topological
Fig. 16 -Generative
Fig. 15 -Scaled
Fig. 14 -Structural
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Types of Architectural Diagrams (Part 2)
Structural (Fig. 14)
Represented through either planimetric, sectional
and/or axonometric diagrams, this kind of diagram
shows either the physical structure of a building,
or how invisible forces such as tension and
compression act on the structure of a building.
Scaled (Fig. 15)
The purpose of scaled diagrams is to provide
context and help relate one building to another.
This can be done through using the scale of
everyday human activity, or any other commonly
known reference.
Generative (Fig. 16)
Generative diagrams are experimental. They are
worked and reworked to help the architect settle
on an idea.
Topological (Fig. 17)
This kind of diagram shows the relationships
between elements of a building or space, and can
provide a clear illustration of how each space works
together and sits within the overall plan.
Euclidian (Fig. 18)
An Euclidean diagram looks similar to a grid. It
shows buildings, or elements of buildings, arranged
so that none can be moved without the adjacent
elements being impacted.
Visual Field (Fig. 19)
Visual field diagrams place lines and arrows inside
a ‘cone’ to give an insight into users’ perception of
a building or space.

7. Architectural Diagrams
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Fig. 23 -Post-Facto
Fig. 22 -Parti
Fig. 21 -Diagrammatic Buildings
Fig. 20 -Sensation
Types of Architectural Diagrams (Part 3)
Sensation (Fig. 20)
Sensation diagrams aim to convey somewhat
intangible effects within a building or space such
as light and texture. Aiming to demonstrate how the
human senses will interact and feel.
Diagrammatic Buidings (Fig. 21)
Made using simple forms, these diagrams show
the building as it looks when it is built, but without
specifications.
Parti (Fig. 22)
Parti diagrams record an architect’s initial response
to a site. Since they illustrate early concepts, they
are usually drawn by hand. Parti diagrams are
perhaps the most abstracted of all architectural
diagrams, and may also be considered generative.
Post-Facto (Fig. 23)
Post-facto diagrams show landscapes, buildings
or elements of buildings after they have been
constructed.

8. Architectural Diagrams
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How to Make a Diagram
Exploded View Diagram
Exploded diagrams show how a product can be
assembled and how the separate parts fit together,
with dotted lines showing where the parts slide into
place. The diagrams also show components that
would usually be hidden in a solid drawing.
In this generic example, we took the solid structure
and divided it into individual components. This was
then moved away from the original to create the
view.

9. Architectural Diagrams
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How to Make a Diagram (Part 2)
Parti
Coming from the French term prendre parti meaning
“to make a decision”, the parti is the architect’s idea
or initial thoughts and plan relating to a space and
its design.
The parti would usually be delivered or pitched to
a client prior to any architectural plans being drawn
up and is usually presented in the form of a diagram
outlining the broad concept for a space
In this example, take the intial from the concept.
Then show the process that was taken to reach the
final form. Using the command Boolean Diffrence
and different colors. Finally combine all three steps
to show the thought process through out the project.