Studying Landscape Architecture Can Open Your Eyes
For me, studying landscape architecture has cursed me. It has made me more opinionated than ever before. I suppose this may be true for almost any area of collegiate study, but I can only speak for myself and landscape architecture. However, with landscape architecture, I believe there is a possibility that it can have a more profound affect on a person than most other fields due to the area’s ambiguous nature.
The curse started quietly and informally. I received no signal that it was affecting my ideals, instead I learned from others and their comments. I began evaluating small design installations everywhere I went. Then it grew to more holistic and large scale applications. I began to explore systems, lifestyle patterns, and politics. Suddenly an unquenchable thirst was upon me. I had to understand the “why.” I call this a curse because when one learns about ideal situations and compares that to the current standards naturally it will drive you a bit nuts. You seem to ask yourself “how did this become the standard?” Then as an act of compulsion you do your research and accept a theory or create you own speculation. From there you ask yourself “why does the current system not change to be more efficient?” This is where everything gets blurry and the curse takes it’s toll. From what I can tell when you get to this point you generally come to the agreement that a massive change would have to occur and to make that change a massive, seemingly impossible force would have to cause it. For me, at this stage I look back in history to determine the scale of influence needed. Generally some sore of crisis must happen to “per-sway” the people a change is necessary. To counter act that crisis must be a visionary group or individual which usually comes in the form of a presidential cabinet. Some examples are: the Great Depression, WWI, WWII, Clean Water Act, and the current economic recession. That’s not to say there are no accounts of groups or communities going against the grain. There are matters of evolution which entail a gradual paradigm shift. This is can be seen in architectural eras, engineering advancements, and social trends just to name a few basic examples.
If you haven’t guessed from reading my other posts my current upset is over America’s present standard of urban development. This ‘upset’ may have never occurred had I not studied landscape architecture. Most likely I would have tried to live the proverbial American Dream to the fullest, never understanding the consequences from my actions. Instead I fight the standard every step of the way. Perhaps it is a bit overkill, but I feel compelled. Some battles I win, some I lose. I never stop fighting. It makes me wonder “what kind of change we as a society will undergo to achieve better, more efficient urban development and planning.” Will it take some catastrophic event (maybe not that big, but big) to change like Oil Peak? Or will it be this quiet evolutionary shift acquiring the ideals of incoming generations? Out with the old and in with the new. New planners, developers, politicians, economists, designers and so on. Will it take a complete generational shift? Perhaps what it comes down to is which will occur first?
Cast your votes,
Keaton
January 19th, 2010Topic: Sustainability: Social Aspect, Uncategorized, Walking the Walk Tags: academic, architecture, landscape, paradigmn, planning, shift, suburban, urban
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August 10th, 2010 at 5:36 pm
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Best,
Keaton