Design Research for Urban Landscapes Theories and Methods

Within the spatial design disciplines, research through design as a tool and practice has often been neglected. This book provides a much-needed companion to the theories, methods and processes involved in using design-based research in landscape, architecture and urban design.

Aimed specifically at researchers completing PhD projects, supervisors and designers working in practice, it covers applied approaches to help you to use design research in your work. With fully illustrated examples of original international design research PhDs from a variety of programme types, such as individual, structured and practice-based, Design Research for Urban Landscapes offers PhD candidates and supervisors a clear foundational pathway.

Introduction 1. Crossing fields: Designing and Researching Raumgeschehen 2. Design Research as a Non-Linear Interplay of Five Moments 3. Navigating in Urban Landscapes – Mapping as a Navigational Strategy in Designing Landscapes 4. Walk with Me! How Walking Inspires Designing 5. Design Comments – A Dialogue-Based Approach to Using Designerly Knowledge in Transdisciplinary Contexts 6. On Playing and Designing. Gaining Knowledge and Finding Ideas through Play during the Process of Designing Urban Landscapes Chapter 7. Holding onto the land 8. Urban Landscape Stories – Narratives as a Design Research Tool 9. Creating Future Research Platforms 10. Setting Out. Creative Strategies for the Beginning Phase in Large-Scale Landscape Design 11. Conclusion

Martin Prominski is a full professor and chair of Designing Urban Landscapes at the Leibniz University Hannover, Germany. He has a PhD from TU Berlin (2003) and is a registered landscape architect. His current research focuses on design research strategies, enhancing urban landscapes and integrative concepts for nature and culture. He is a member of the Studio Urbane Landschaften, an interdisciplinary platform for research, practice and teaching on urban landscapes, and the co-founder of the Sino-German Cooperation Group on Urbanization and Locality Research.

Hille von Seggern is a landscape designer, artist, registered architect and urban designer. She works and advises on 'crossing-fields-projects' in Hille von Seggern & Timm Ohrt AlltagForschungKunst and Studio Urbane Landschaften cooperation projects. From 1995 to 2008 she held a full professorship at the Leibniz University Hannover, Germany, and in 2005 founded, together with Julia Werner, the Studio Urbane Landschaften as a think tank for research, practice and teaching.