Project Overview
Although we tend to think of our cities as concrete jungles, our post-new urban environment is awash in plant life. Spontaneously propagating, resilient plants find distinctive niches to thrive in and inhabit our most derelict landscapes. Spontaneous Urban Plants (SUP) is a research project that investigates the role of weeds in the urban ecosystem. Leveraging principles of urban ecology and environmental aesthetics, the project encourages an objective debate of the value of wild urban plants and thereby challenging contemporary cultural perceptions.
The project invites members of the public interact with the weeds by traversing urban spaces on foot and documenting their findings through social media application Instagram. This allows us to consider the aesthetic value of the environment from the individual’s perspective through immediate and hands-on experience. The Interactive MAP filters photos by species or performance attributes, thus highlighting SUP’s ecological, cultural, and aesthetic significance.
For this project I documented academic research on urban ecology related to exotic species. I also supported the team in providing deliverables and mock ups for the website development. I also coordinated with the website developer in order to obtain quotes and meet deadlines.
Recipient of an ASLA Research Honor Award 2015 (American Society of Landscape Architects)
For more information visit: http://spontaneousurbanplants.org/
Project Responsibilities
- Research Spontaneous Urban Plants and expand on the existing ecological value matrix
- Provide concept designs for development and maintenance of the research website
- Implement framework designs in diagrammatic form using Adobe Illustrator or Adobe InDesign
- Assist in the planning and orchestration of new transect walks
- Help design new methods of collecting, archiving and developing the in-house inventory of SUP
- Provide concept designs for development and maintenance of the research website
- Implement framework designs in diagrammatic form using Adobe Illustrator or Adobe InDesign
- Assist in the planning and orchestration of new transect walks
- Help design new methods of collecting, archiving and developing the in-house inventory of SUP
- Locate timelapse cameras to capture plant growth in urban settings and edit corresponding videos
Future Green Studio - Landscape Design and Build Firm
Timeline: January - August 2014
Team: David Seiter RLA (Principal) and Lois Farningham (Associate Designer)
My role: Academic research, user experience mockups, website structure and backend maintenace (Design Research Assistant)
