a learning resource
for architects and designers

united states of design is a learning resource for architects, designers, students, and professionals. resources are free full courses & tutorials. THEse courses and tutorials include rhino 3d, adobe illustrator, photoshop, indesign, rendering with rhino 3d, enscape, d5, portfolio design, architecture school tips, and professional practice.

This video is a guide on how to create Muqarnas in Rhino 3D. This course goes into detail about the methods of constructing a Muqarnas in Rhino by starting out with basic geometries and progressing into more advanced geometries. The video also covers the history and the construction methods of Muqarnas.

This course covers a brief history of renowned Dutch architectural painters Pieter Jansz Saenredam, Hendrick Van Vliet, and Emanuel de Witte. The course then goes into detail on the concept and methods of creating dramatic exterior architecture renderings from Rhino 8 and D5 Render. We will review texture mapping, how to create normal and displacement maps, editing materials, editing materials in D5, landscaping in D5, Lighting in D5, Views in D5, Capturing final renders in D5, and photoshop post processing.

This video course covers how to model one of my favorite Japanese joints, Miyajima Tsugi, or the triple faced halved rabbeted scarf joint in Rhino 3D. We cover basic commands like polyline, line, divide, array, and multiple surface commands. We then create display settings in Rhino to create a wood hatch aesthetic diagram, insert materials, adjust lineweights, create dimensions, views, layouts, and print settings.

This video course covers how to create monochrome sections in Rhino 8. You do not need to use any other program other than Rhino 8. This course is great for anyone creating architecture or design sections, axons, schematics, or diagrams for school, portfolios, projects, competitions, and professional work.

This video course covers how to create monochrome diagrams in Rhino 8. You do not need to use any other program other than Rhino 8. This course is great for anyone creating architecture or design diagrams for school, portfolios, projects, competitions, and professional work.

This course covers the fundamentals of a minimal architecture portfolio layout. We cover the history of architecture folios and architecture drawing layout with the folio collection of Giovanni Battista Piranesi and The Four Books of Architecture by Andrea Palladio.

This video is to help architecture students and new professionals navigate the professional architectural industry. I go into detail about the different architecture practice types, sizes, pros and cons, summaries, and practice examples.

This video demonstrates how to model spiral stairs in Rhino 3D. The video covers calculating spiral stairs, modeling opened and closed risers, sweep commands, stair landings, and guard rails.

This course covers how to model groin vaults, fan vaults, fillet surface, sweeps, piping, offset surface, Rhino display settings and creating worm's eye view axonometrics in Rhino 3D.

This course provides a detailed analysis and procedure of modeling the Philips Pavilion (Le Corbusier and Lannis Xenakis) in Rhino 3D. This course also goes into detail about the construction of the actual Pavilion. We will use commands in Rhino like Sweep 1, Sweep 2, Network Surface and Extract Wire Frame, among other commands.

This course covers floor plan perspective workflow in Rhino and Illustrator. You will learn how to create floor plan perspectives, orient camera to surfaces, clipping planes, Make 2d, and Illustrator color, lineweights, and hatches.

This course explains how to create sections perspectives in Rhino 3D. You can use any version of Rhino.

This course covers axonometric drawings in Rhino 3D and Illustrator. You will earn how to create true length axonometric drawings in Rhino 3d, which axonometric you can export to a scale. You will also learn graphic methods in both typical and exploded axonometric drawings in Illustrator and Photoshop.

This video course covers how to model a wood framed rain screen wall section in Rhino 3d. This is great for students to understand basic residential assembly for rain screens. We also explore integrated / concealed gutter details and material finishes.

This video is an explanation of the Desk Crit (Critique) for Architecture and Design School students and professionals. Hopefully this will provide guidance of how to take advantage of your desk crit, what to do, what not to do, personal lessons, and red flags.

This course explores the basics of diagramming a simple box with lineweights, colors, transparency, and annotations. This is great starter for designers and architects. For a more detailed diagram course and tutorial for architects or designers, please see my Diagramming Course.

This course explores the basics of diagramming a simple box with lineweights, colors, transparency, and annotations. This is great starter for designers and architects. For a more detailed diagram course and tutorial for architects or designers, please see my Diagramming Course.

This video course covers how to model a helical or spiral stairs in Rhino3D. This is a continuation of the Landform Architecture series. Please make sure to watch the other Landform Architecture courses to understand how to model landform masses and structure.

This tutorial course covers a basic parametric landform roof structure design. This courses uses a very basic parameter based on a grasshopper plug-in (see link below). We also cover basic roof details like Insulation, Drainage Boards, Membranes, and Edge Details.

I highly suggest watching the prior videos on watercolor textures and diagramming (see links Below) if you have elementary knowledge on illustrator workflow. This course goes into depth about creating multi-tone drawings in Illustrator (from Make2d outlines in Rhino 3D) and overlaying renderings with vector graphics.

This tutorial course goes into depth about teaching watercolor representational drawings like diagrams, plans, axons, and perspectives for architects and designers. This is a popular aesthetic that many viewers enjoy. Rhino + Illustrator is used in this course. I show 2 methods of creating these drawings, so watch both methods and see which you prefer.

In this course, we explore creating an architectural landform design from a basic surface operation in Rhino 3D. We cover commands like rebuild surface, contour, sweep, offset surface, among other commands. This course is related to the Modelling Curves course.

This is a full course on introductory modelling of curved geometry in Rhino3D. We cover commands like line, polyline, interpolate curve, point curve, rebuild curve, offset, surface building, and surface rebuilding.

This course is a primer on understanding how to use Rhino from a beginner level. If you are in a position where you need to learn rhino as soon as possible because you're in an academic or professional setting, I'm making this video for you.

This is an architectural diagramming course that goes into depth on how to create any kind of 3D Diagram between Rhino and Illustrator. This course is intended for people who are beginners(+) with Rhino and Illustrator, so some of the steps may seem redundant to reinforce the learning process.