| As a result of population explosions, and changing attitudes about the ecology of large cities, the field of urban design has become increasingly complicated. As a response to this increased complexity a new design movement is emerging within the established professions of architecture, landscape architecture and planning. It is called landscape urbanism (Corner, 2003, p. 58). This emerging design movement could have an impact on the profession of landscape architecture, and other urban design fields (Bunster-Ossa, 2001, p. 42).; Landscape urbanists favor an approach that emphasizes designed frameworks for growth and change over time. Landscape urbanism stresses a shift from the pictorial to the performative, or operational (Waldheim, 2002, p. 12). Process and project flexibility are prioritized over end product. Landscape urbanism stresses the formation of multidisciplinary teams to develop urban design solutions.; This research investigates the emergence of landscape urbanism. The objectives are: (1) To identify this newly emerging movement and where it came from; (2) To outline its salient characteristics; and, (3) To determine its possible future and implications for landscape architecture.; The findings from this study indicate that some elements of landscape urbanism are not different from traditional landscape architecture, and that unsubstantiated claims have been made about this design movement. The data indicate that landscape urbanism is so vague that proponents of this movement can not concisely define it.{09}The data also indicate that landscape urbanism is viewed differently by architects and landscape architects. More time and research are needed to determine whether landscape urbanism will make a substantive contribution to the practice of urban design.{09}This study concludes with a summary of the findings and a discussion of the implications these findings have for the future of landscape urbanism. Suggestions for additional research needed on this topic are discussed in the summary section of the study. |
