Emergence in Landscape Architecture

Emergence is the way in which complex systems and patterns arise out of a multiplicity of relatively simple interactions. Related to chaos theory and self-organising systems, emergence highlights the ever changing and developing urban and natural world and the need to work flexibly within this. Just as an aborist must understand the development and functions of a tree in order to fully understand his actions in relation to it, so must a landscape architect understand the ecological functions of a specific terrain in order to appreciate how the landscape will respond to the conditions he establishes. This bottom-up approach is essential when dealing with the natural environment and, as Barnett argues, the urban environment. Covering critically the theory behind emergence in landscape architecture, the author also uses practical examples from international landscapes as a key tool in his mission to explain the basis of emergence and how it is critical to our understanding of both urban and natural systems. Ideal for students taking courses in landscape architecture, landscape urbanism and architectural theory, this book provides a full discourse on the theory and practice behind emergence in landscape and features full colour images.