IN-PERSON Prague Research & Teaching Conference
Abstract
This research explores the relationship between evolving digital tools and the use of Indigenous plants in landscape architecture design projects in New Zealand. Rapid advancements in digital imaging technologies over the past two decades have changed the ways that we see and experience the world. For landscape architects, technological advancements have shifted design processes. There is concern that through this shift a decline in hand-drawing has impacted the connections made between designer, place and materials. This study investigates how image-creation tools in undergraduate design projects relate to the variety and use of plants in the same projects with a focus on the use of Indigenous plants. Projects spanning 20 years of student work from the Lincoln University Living Heritage archive were analysed. The recorded data highlights trends of increased image and Indigenous plant use as digital technologies have evolved. Digitally produced images were the largest contributor to the overall rise in image use. The findings suggest that while digital tools offer efficiency and expanded possibilities for designers, if used in isolation they could contribute to a disconnection between designers and their physical connection with sites, sense of place and unique environments that support local biodiversity. For landscape architecture education and professional practice, these insights emphasise the need to maintain a balance between; the efficiencies offered through advancing digital technologies, and the sensitivities developed through hands-on design skills like drawing to support cultural and ecological sustainability in landscape architecture.
Victoria Dawes completed her Master’s of Landscape Architecture at Te Whare Wānaka O Aoraki | Lincoln University, Aotearoa | New Zealand in 2024. Following a 10-year career as a Ceramic Artist, her research explores the evolving interplay between tactile creative practices and digital design as technology advances. She also examines how different tools shape design thinking and practice, with an emphasis on the use of Indigenous plants in contemporary landscape architecture projects.
Nada Toueir is a Senior Lecturer in Landscape Architecture at Te Whare Wānaka O Aoraki | Lincoln University, Aotearoa | New Zealand. Her research focuses on the relationship between Landscape Architecture, Culture and Resilience; and Landscape Education. She looks at how designers can learn from/apply local knowledge in post-disaster situations to build a better future. She focuses on place attachment, memory, informal social networks, and cultural identity to understand the intricate relationships that people build with their environment. Also, her interests span to Landscape Education and how educators can shape the future of teaching while using blended learning and hybrid forms of teaching (online and face-to-face), especially in studio environments.
Don Royds is a Lecturer in Landscape Architecture at Te Whare Wānaka O Aoraki | Lincoln University, Aotearoa | New Zealand. He has a keen interest in digital tools for design and the use of the design + build teaching method for student learning. The use of site-based data, particularly big data, and how it can inform environmental designers is the main focus of his research. He also seeks to find new ways to manipulate data that has been captured by UAVs/drones to develop innovative interactions with this data through augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR), and to research new methods for sensing the landscape.
1:30 pm - 3:00 pm
Thursday 12th June, 2025