Excursions day: Next is not just a place—it’s a responsibility

Where do you want to go to get a deeper view?

Fourth day of sketching 2025 – Sketching Inside and Out – From City Streets to Celebration

Our fourth day of SketchCity 2025 began with Rotterdam’s famously unpredictable weather: a steady rain that sent us from the streets into museums, cafés, and classrooms. But the sketching didn’t stop—it simply changed atmosphere. Between cappuccinos and exhibition walls, students continued to observe, reflect, and draw. Indoors, we shifted the focus to refining sketches, adding […]

Third day of Sketching 2025 – Sketching Rotterdam’s Future—Exploring Urban Themes Through Drawing

On the third day of SketchCity 2025, students ventured into Rotterdam’s diverse urban landscapes, applying the Sketch&Draw method to delve into the city’s complexities. Guided by the week’s central theme — The Challenges of the Future Liveable City —participants explored interconnected topics: Urban Botany, Architecture and Urban Space, Movement Patterns, and Social Impact. Urban Botany: […]

Second Day of Sketching 2025

Following a series of inspiring lectures from leading urban experts—including Jan Rothuizen and the team at DeFacto Urbanism—our students took to the streets of Rotterdam, transforming the city into their open-air studio. Equipped with sketchbooks and the Sketch&Draw method, they explored the urban landscape not just as observers, but as active interpreters of spatial, social, […]

First Day of Sketching and Keynote 2025

The first day of the tenth edition of the sketchcity studyweek is opened. 170 student and 7 lecturers from both countries, The Netherlands ans Switzerland celebrate this event with a guest lecture of Jan Rothuizen. Renu Jagernath, Head of Urban Development at Hogeschool Rotterdam, welcomed us with a warm and inspiring speech on the importance […]

Topics of Sketchcity 2025

10th Edition of sketchcity studyweek

Fifth day – Ideas sheets

Knowing the urgent needs helps to find the better solutions.

Fourth Day – Processing the ideas and sketches

Knowing the urgent needs helps to find the better solutions.

Third Day – Scientific input to improve the ideas

Knowing the urgent needs helps to find the better solutions.

Second Day – How to draft an idea with a sketch?

Sketching is more than just a tool for visualising ideas; it is an essential part of the creative process in urban planning.

First Day on the Floating Pavillion

What are the challenges of the future liveable city?

Topics of Sketchcity Study Week 2024

These are our five topics: 1 Architecture | 2 Biodiversity | 3 Climate Change | 4 Social Impact | 5 Water

My idea is …

The Sketchcity study week in Rotterdam 2023 generated many exciting ideas on how to transform urban spaces to make them more attractive, environmentally friendly and people-friendly.

Friday | Final Assignment Presenting the ideasketches

Our idea is.. Four teams per location developed different ideas as a group to transform the place. Here are some of them – one from each location. My idea is.. Each student then developed and sketched their own idea based on the group idea. Again, everyone focused on their location. Go to the Project Gallery: […]

Thursday | Finalizing the ideasketches

On Thursday, the students met at 10 am in Academieplein.At the beginning Andreas Mädler explained the levies for today: For the final submission everyone has to hand in Afterwards Hans Karssenberg gave a presentation about the topic: City at Eye-level. This is about how people walk through the city and perceive it. Then the students […]

Wednesday | Hands on urbanism

On sunny Wednesday morning, students met at the STC building at 09:30. At the beginning Andreas Mädler explained today’s levies: Afterwards dr. ir. Anne Loes Nillessen gave a presentation about urban water challenges in Rotterdam and other cities. Afterwards Andreas Kohli talked about urban climate questions in Zurich with the topic „Making Zurich a better […]

Tuesday | Getting in Contact with the 10 Locations

Tuesday started at 10:00 a.m. and the first thing the students learned was which group had won the „Contest for Best Cognitive Map“. Andreas Mädler then informed the students about the new daily task, which included: However, before the tasks started, Prof. Gerard Peet gave an interesting presentation about the history and formation of Rotterdam. […]

Monday | Key note and Treasure Hunt

Rotterdam meets Chur On Monday the day started relaxed after a welcome coffee at 10 am in the STC building with a beautiful view over Rotterdam and directly at the waterfront. All students from Switzerland and Rotterdam met for the first time. The students from Switzerland are studying „Multimedia Production“ and the students from Rotterdam […]

Day 1 Kickoff & Intro

Pick up inspiration from the artist Jan Rothuizen. Understand what the week is about. Know what is expected at the end. And then a treasure hunt.

Sketchcity 2023 in Rotterdam

Overview of the sketchcity study week

What are the challenges of the future liveable city?

Ultimate need for actions are on scope. Here some background information. Update 2023

Exhibitions of Ideas | 10th June 2022

The Sketchcity week is almost over. For the last time, all students and lecturers met at the university. All the posters with the ideas are finalised. An exhibition took place where all the innovative and creative ideas were viewed. The best projects were highlighted and discussed. Some very great work has been done! This was celebrated with a final BBQ! Now this wonderful week is over again and everyone is on their way home.

Idea development and lots of sketching | 9th June 2022

This morning the research event – stroll with cognitive map – took place. After the 30 minute walk through Rotterdam, the students met again at the starting point and drew their route from memory.

sketch – sketch – sketch | 8th June 2022

There was also a lot of sketching in the art museum. In the evening we visited the Rotterdam Rooftop walk, which highlights very exciting and important topics.

First Day in Rotterdam | 7th June 2022

First day in Rotterdam. Happy Sketching!

What is the Benefit of sketched visual Storytelling in Social Media by Ideasketches?

It has always been the great trick of devil, to make man believe, he didn’t exist.

Happy sketching in Rotterdam 2022

We are happy to announce the Sketchcity Studyweek in Rotterdam 2022 This year’s study week is again an Erasmus plus project and financed by the EU. It will take place from 6.-10. June 2022 in Rotterdam. This is a presser cooker week with almost 150 Students from Switzerland. The students are joined by Dutch students […]

Sketch&Draw at the Erasmus+ Project Impetus at Coimbra University in Portugal

Sketching Cognitive Maps as a tool for research in climate change

These are the sketched Corona Stories of June 2020

During four days the students sketched their stories around Corona. The sketched reports were written before the end of the first lockdown in Switzerland, i.e. before 8 June 2020. We all spent 12 weeks in self-distancing and lived according to the motto „stay at home“. Have a look at the nearly 100 stories here, which […]

Day 4: the sketched Corona reportage

After almost a week of sketching, the drawn reports are now available. What is the story behind? Find it out here. Silvan K. Viktoria B. Selina S. Alexanda M. Julia K. Angela S. Estella M. Jael F. Jana H. Jonas Geruscha L. Alessia S. Julia B. Laura K. Lea Z. Lisa H. Luana F. […]

Day 3: work on sketches & texts of the individual Corona reportage story

It is the images that recall our memories that are strong. So let us work with this kind of images.

Day 2: Sketch sketch sketch

The challenge is to wrap up the story in sketches and text. So there was a lot to think about.

Day 1: Sketch a storyboard @ home

How to make a story out of the experiences during Corona?

Sketch @ home: Drawn reportage on the subject of Corona!

How do you experience this time with Corona?

„Sketchcity“ is part of the Erasmus+ project „impetus“

„impetus“ is the acronym for Innovative measurement tool towards urban environmental awareness.

Goodbye Rotterdam sketchcity study week 2019 ended – Have a safe trip home

Last Impressions

Presenting the ideasketches

Desktop Exhibition and Video Presentations

Ideas Sketchcity Study Week 2019

Ideas Sketchcity – Results and concepts of the different group themes

Ideasketches in search of sustainable concepts

Skechting ideas in search of sustainable concepts

Day 1: What are the benefits of ideasketching for the city of Rotterdam?

Sketchcity studyweek kick-off at RDM Campus Rotterdam

Day 2: Documentary drawing and art interventions

Dutch earthquakes and its impacts as starting points for documentary drawing and art interventions

Day 3: Sketches project future

Best practices in sketching and documentary drawing

Day 4: Seeing the case

Jakarta and its problems with rising sea level

Day 5: Presenting the ideasketches

Show the best idea you generated during the Sketchcity studyweek

Sketchcity Themen 2019

urban gardening | urban forest | heritage&culture | generation project | urban & Hinterland | hands on art inventions | urban water | art&culture | street livability | handmade urbanism | multimedia intervention / communication | interactive game |

Futureland: Deine Turnschuhe waren mit grosser Sicherheit schon da! Dein T-Shirt auch!

GROSS, GROSSER, AM GROSSTEN

Sketching projects future

First: We inform us about the triggering climate change and the topic of climate adoption.
…
Tenth: We share the experience in social media.

Sketching Reportage

SDG 11: Sketching the future of our city

Reiseführer auf Digezz

Rotterdam ist eine Stadt am Puls der Zeit. Mehr auf Digezz!

This is my idea for the resilient liveable city

@ Abstracts Wall The random part of the rich ‚my idea is‘ abstracts of the students study week 2017 projects from the Sketchcity Wall. A documentation of all students projects will be published later. A sample Sketchcity Design Sketchidea Process Here are some good ideas presented as a one-page presentation. Not only the sketches are of great value, […]

Group architecture and social space

Handouts

Who is teaching?

Tanja Hess the pencil is our mighty tool Jöelle Kost a pen, a brush and 5 minutes of time Andreas Mädler may the force be with you Giada Zacheo show the world what you see in your head Andreas Kohli draw the future Noah Schär drawing is the study and understanding of things

Heritage & culture students‘ research

Rotterdam is home to the largest seaport in Europe and is the most important trading location for oil in Europe. During the Second World War, the city center was almost completely destroyed …

Urban water students‘ research

Urban water encompasses the management of a sufficient supply of clean drinking water and the disposal of wastewater.

Urban, agglomeration & hinterland students‘ research

The number of challenges: dirty air, heavy traffic, and high rents. The boundaries between city and hinterland have dissolved.

Urban green students‘ research

Urban Green explores the ways in which future cities can help people feel good and stay healthy – both physically and psychologically.

Hands-on art interventions students‘ research

Shared communities organize themselves, pop-ups emerge and art projects are implemented.

Generation project students‘ research

What will the future of housing and co-living look like? The „generation project“ addresses questions like this.

Urban gardening students‘ research

Bringing color, life, and farming traditions back to urban cities: That’s the main goal of Urban Gardening.