Abstract: The aim of this article is to verify how the representation of the city and the territory can be used at the same time as a description and as a design tool. We will consider three territorial representation proposals in different moments and very different contexts: Busan, in South Korea, the island of Tenerife and a central region in Catalonia (both in Spain). In the case of Busan, we analyse through a comparative method the cadastral map drawn up in 1914 after the Japan occupation of Korea. In the Spanish case-studies the method is based on the superposition of different analysis and design layers. The comparison of the three cases shows the diverse possibilities of drawing used as a tool of analysis and description, but also as a tool for thinking the future of territories and cities.