Sketching as an Architecture of Care: A Longitudinal In-Person Artist-Researcher Study of Sketching as a Process of Awareness, Selection, and Meaning Construction
Liu Wei (Claire)Abstract
This seven-year longitudinal artist-researcher study (2019–2026) examines how sketching functions as a process of awareness, selection, and meaning construction. Based on the *Life* series—over 300 early sketches, 13 core works, and the final *Rose Whisper / XuanSheng NO.0*—the research employs retrospective content analysis, formal analysis, and phenomenological reflection. Findings reveal a three-stage mechanism—emergence, focusing, transformation—through which existential anxiety is externalized, meaning is constructed through selection, and visual confirmation is achieved. The article proposes “sketching as an architecture of care,” arguing that sketching is not image production but a practice of constructing inner order, meaning, and self-dwelling through lines, composition, and repetition.