The first project at Cooper Union (1947) was given in the two-dimensional studio taught by the wonder-full Henrietta Schutz. We were to produce an illustrated book on selected Aesop’s Fables. We worked for one full year on that book. The experience of designing this volume was one of unique importance as a tool for the introduction to architecture. Through a rigorous discipline it trained the eye (visual sensibility) and the hand (tactilesensibility). We learned how to handle a paint brush, and began the exorcising of one’s innate feelings toward color, form and space.

We were given a blank sheet of white paper approximately 10” X 12” and were asked to place a black shape using no right angle in the approximated center of the field. We dipped our camel’s hair brush into a large jar of black tempera, placed and painted the shape of our liking (tempera dries fast). Then Henrietta Schutz would come over, look questioningly at our black shape and would indicate it was not quite right, “perhaps you should take a brush full of white tempera and take … a little bit off the upper right corner of the black shape.” We did so. Then she would return and say, “Ah, yes, that is good. But perhaps now since you’ve done that you may have to add some black to the bottom left corner.” And so it was. We were in training for a very long time working with the black figure on the white ground, adding and subtracting … black and white. We learned about the energies of form and space, about the inner workings of tensions and compressions, and about relationships. We began to understand the workings of the periphery and of the edge and of right angle corners. We felt the densities of black and white, we were able to perfect our handling of the brush, we could cut a black line in two with the brush (that is parallel to the line) … no T squares, no right angles … only the eye, hand, paint, paper and brush. We could peel the thin black shape off the paper with our imaginations. We learned the delight of controlling flat surfaces, and also the sensuosity of curves. We learned about the tactile, the taste of paint and the feel of paper. We learned how to add and abstract color. Consequently the training of an architect began. Story telling came later.

以下為嘗試翻譯稿，請謹慎閱讀。如有誤導(dǎo)，概不負責(zé)。

庫伯聯(lián)盟（Cooper Union）讀書期間的第一個項目（1947年）是在由神奇的亨麗埃塔·舒茨（Henrietta Schutz）指導(dǎo)的二維工作室中完成的。我們要做一本關(guān)于《伊索寓言選集》的插圖書，并付出了整整一年的時間在這部書上。作為建筑學(xué)入門的方法，設(shè)計這冊叢書的這段經(jīng)歷具有無可替代的重要性。通過嚴格的訓(xùn)練，它鍛煉了眼睛（視覺敏感性）和手（觸覺敏感性），使我們學(xué)會了如何使用畫筆，并開始祛除個人對顏色、形式以及空間的先天感覺。

我們得到一張大約10英寸 x 12英寸的白紙，并被要求在近似中心的位置放置一個沒有任何直角的黑色形狀。我們將“駝毛筆”蘸進一大瓶黑色蛋彩畫顏料中，然后開始涂繪自己喜歡的形狀（蛋彩顏料干得很快）。然后亨麗埃塔·舒茨會走過來，用帶著懷疑的目光看著我們畫的黑色形狀，并指出它不太對，“或許你應(yīng)該用一支蘸滿白色蛋彩顏料的畫筆，把…黑色形狀的右上角去掉一點點。” 我們照做了。然后她會回來并說道：“啊，是的，做的不錯。但是現(xiàn)在既然你已經(jīng)那樣做了，你可能需要在左下角添加一些黑色?！?果然如此。我們花了好長一段時間訓(xùn)練在白色底板上處理黑色圖形，增加、減少，黑色、白色。（從中）我們學(xué)習(xí)了形式與空間的能量，了解了擴張和收縮的內(nèi)在運作，并理解了關(guān)系。我們開始了解表皮、邊界和直角的工作原理。我們感受到了黑色和白色的密度，并可以更加熟練地使用畫筆，我們能夠用畫筆（平行于線）將一條黑色直線一分為二…不用丁字尺也不用直角尺…僅靠眼睛，手，顏料，紙和畫筆。我們可以憑自己的想象把那薄薄的黑色形狀從紙上一點一點剝離下來。我們獲得了控制平面的樂趣，并得到了對曲線的美感。我們學(xué)會了觸摸，嘗到了顏料的味道，也知道了紙張的手感。我們學(xué)到了如何添加和抽取顏色。于是，建筑師的訓(xùn)練由此開始，而故事講述緊隨其后。

1. 海杜克（John Hejduk）于1947年開始就讀庫伯聯(lián)盟學(xué)院，并于1950年畢業(yè)。

2. 據(jù)說《Aesop's Fables Illustrated by John Hejduk》有蛋彩版插圖，可惜我沒買到。

3. 本篇插圖全部來自于Mask of Medusa，by?John Hejduk。