Ecological design: Investigating the aesthetic language of ecological function

This paper examines whether public aesthetic perceptions of certain landscape patterns are similar among different metropolitan land use contexts.  Similarity could suggest elements of a repeatable landscape aesthetic language that could be employed to advance ecological function by design.  To investigate possible similarities, this paper draws on a series of image-based web surveys of public aesthetic preferences for ecologically beneficial designs. These projects all assume that aesthetics and ecological function are not inherently related but can be related by design – that is, that beautiful landscapes are not necessarily ecologically healthy, and ecologically beneficial landscape characteristics are not necessarily beautiful, but that design and planning can make ecologically beneficial landscapes look attractive to the public. Landscape contexts of the web surveys include: urban brownfield redevelopment (n=399), exurban sprawl (n=500), and metropolitan highway corridors (n=1108).  For each context, landscape patterns and features that varied in their aesthetic language and ecological benefits were designed with the advice of informed stakeholders, simulations of each alternative were constructed for multiple landscape replicates, and public aesthetic perceptions of the alternatives were measured. Results demonstrate that certain landscape patterns and features are consistently recognized as attractive in different metropolitan settings. Furthermore, these patterns and features may function at marginal thresholds that allow considerable latitude for ecological design innovation.  This suggests that if designers employ a recognizable landscape aesthetic language, they do not need to sacrifice either ecological or aesthetic design innovation.