This course is designed to work in three ways. First, it is an opportunity to learn about London’s architecture and history by physically exploring the city’s historic and modern built environment. Second, this class is an introduction to sketching and keeping a travel notebook, a fulfilling skill that any liberal arts student should experience. Third, and perhaps most important, this course teaches students how to ‘read’ a building and a town or city. The ability to visually make sense of the built environment of this major capital should help in understanding the architecture of New York City and other towns and cities throughout the world. Our course is formed of a series of site visits through London’s extraordinary and diverse environment, considering significant architectural developments from many periods, while learning to record and describe what we see. We will study the architectural vocabulary of London and learn how to accurately and elegantly depict buildings and places in both word and image. Please note that it is very important that students attend the first class, which covers the introductory information, lecture and drawing session.