In Surveying, Interpreting, and Designing: The Multiple Essence of a Sixteenth-Century Drawing, Lucia Nuti examines Uffizi drawing 7950 A, an unfinished representation of Pisa attributed to Giuliano da Sangallo. First addressing problems of authorship and dating, Nuti analyzes the main features and contents of the drawing, which she concludes cannot be labeled a survey or ground plan, and draws insights regarding a more complex issue, the multiple nature of the artifact. This unique sheet, far from being the visual record of a measured urban space, is a personal record that reflects Giuliano's approach to design as well as the meaning of the process of drawing. At the beginning of the sixteenth century, drawing was developing as a medium for architectural communication, and the borders between surveying, interpreting, and designing were blurred.
University of California Press