Architectural illustration in cross-domain collaboration: the storytelling ovens case

This article explores the role of architectural illustration in interdisciplinary and cross-domain collaborations by focusing on a single-case study, The Storytelling Ovens, a project created by Cuptorul Moldovencei, Iași.travel and Atelier Spre. Through a qualitative, practice-based methodology, the article documents and analyzes the project, reflecting on the contributions of architectural illustrations to the collaborative scenario and on the specific contexts and creative processes that produced them. By employing an illustrative approach rooted in imaginative exploration, Atelier Spre shows how architectural illustration can initiate cross-disciplinary collaborations, spark community dialogue, foster emotional connections, support tourism and local economies, archive cultural change, and transform everyday urban spaces into accessible and meaningful narratives. The study demonstrates that architectural illustration carries significance beyond architectural design, emerging as a catalyst for collaboration and a vehicle for civic and cultural engagement. Embracing architectural illustration as a versatile, participatory practice can foster new modes of urban storytelling and reshape how cities are experienced, narrated, and remembered.