Showerthought: I found out the original blueprint for the Empire State Building was drawn on linen, not paper

I was reading an old trade journal from the 1930s (a client gave me a box of them, long story) and it said the main drawings for the Empire State Building were done on linen cloth. I always thought it was just heavy paper, you know? The article said they used linen because it was strong and didn't tear easy, and they could erase on it a bunch of times without it falling apart. It made me think about how we treat files now, just hitting 'save as' a million times. Back then, the drawing itself was this physical thing you had to keep safe. Makes you wonder what we're losing with all this digital stuff, even if it's faster. Has anyone else run into a really old drafting method that made you stop and think?

2 comments

2 Comments

skyler_kim2mo ago

Honestly sounds like a huge pain to work with. Tbh digital files are way better, you can't lose them in a fire or spill coffee on a server. Ngl I don't miss the old ways at all.

troy_ross2mo ago

But you can't accidentally delete a whole filing cabinet with one wrong click.