Louisa Schmolke

Louisa is a Scottish artist, architectural designer, and content creator based in London. She creates travel content by painting, drawing, and capturing her artistic process on trips around the world! In 2025 she visited Norway and left with new drawings of the places she visited.

What motivated you to become an architectural designer?

"I was always interested in sketching and photography from a young age! I wasn’t sure what to study at university (like many young people), and I applied to architecture as I thought it would be a degree that would provide me with a variety of skills. I ended up thriving on the course and continued on to do a Master's in Architecture, graduating as the best final year student after presenting my final thesis through the medium of artwork."

How did the idea of travelling around the world and drawing emerge?

"I've been travelling since I was 16, always jetting off (back when flights were far cheaper and Brexit hadn't impacted travel!). I used to live and work in Washington DC and I travelled every other weekend around that side of the world.

I'm always trying to get to new countries and Norway was high on my list. I couldn’t have asked for a better 10 days than I had there in summer 2025."

What is it about an object that makes you want to draw it specifically?

"I think I just use drawing mostly as a tool to 'record' and to remember. It's all about the documentation for me, and the ability to flick back through pages and know exactly where I was and how I was feeling when I made the sketch or painting."

What, in your view, characterises Norwegian architecture?

"This is a hard one, as it varies from the ‘traditional’ and well-known styles of architecture that many associate with the green, living roofs, and of course the traditional terraced rows of Bryggen.

For me, I adore what Snøhetta are doing in Norway. I work with them on a freelance basis and create content about their buildings through analysis sketches in my sketchbook. When I think of Norway now, I think of the brilliant work they have done on their Bolder Lodges in Lysefjord and Under Restaurant in Lindesnes."