Concept of Seasonality for Landscape Architecture
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Proceedings of the Latvia University of Agriculture Landscape Architecture and Art, Volume 3, Number 3 Concept of Seasonality for Landscape Architecture Indra Purs, Latvia University of Agriculture Abstract. Landscape seasonal change is taken-for-granted aspect of landscape. To live in, plan and design landscape with respect to seasonal opportunities and constrains it is necessary to understand the phenomenon. To answer a research questions – what concept of seasonality consists of and how landscape scientists understand season’s phenomenon – as a most appropriate research method inferred was content analysis. As a research data were used five selected articles from book “Seasonal Landscapes” H. Palang, A. Printsmann, & H. Soovali (Eds.) Landscape series, volume 7, (2007) Springer. The paper investigates how the researchers experience and explicate phenomenon of seasonality. The research resulted in five distinct thematic categories – ‘time’, ‘human’, ‘space’, ‘architecture’ and ‘phenomenon’ with several subcategories each. Since the target of research is to find components for concept of seasonality for landscape architecture the category ‘architecture’ was set intentionally, other categories rose from research. For some categories the point of saturation when scientists continue reporting essentially the same ideas was reached. As theoretical investigations on the phenomenon of seasonality in landscapes are far away from completeness and it is premature to set a stable paradigm, the format of research disclosed in this paper is considered to be descriptive instead of interpretative. The results reached by methodology used were over expected. Keywords: seasonality, content analysis, phenomenon. Introduction Spatial atmospheric openness of landscape to seasonality for landscape architecture. The landscape climate impermanence is subject to diurnal, weather architecture is an anthropocentric discipline which joins and seasonal rhythms. Due to the Earth revolution aesthetics and utility of landscape for humans. around the Sun and the Earth axial tilt the landscapes The definition of ‘landscape’ by European trooping away from equator experience seasonality to Landscape Convention is grounded on human an increasing degree. Also topography, altitude and perception [1]. This is a cusp of disciplines between microclimatic conditions are a reason for seasonal landscape architecture and phenomenology. variety in landscape. This is independent phenomenon. The phenomenology as a science developed from If we believe in notion that the best things in life are movement in philosophy and humanities. free, then the seasonality is free for sure. To live in, “Phenomenological research is the study of lived or plan and design landscape with respect to seasonal experiential meaning and attempts to describe and opportunities and constrains it is necessary to interpret these meanings in the ways that they emerge understand the phenomenon. and are shaped by consciousness, language, our The seasonal character of landscape is cognitive and noncognitive sensibilities, and by our a component of regional landscape identity. Landscape preunderstandings and presuppositions” [9, 614]. seasonal change is taken-for-granted aspect of Also Gadamer marked what the role language plays in landscape. That could be feasible explanation for the bringing experience to understanding [9, 388]. fact of simplifying knowledge of seasonality and The research started from a perspective free from scarcity of investigations of this phenomenon in hypotheses. Seasonality is a reality. Since seasonality is landscape architecture theory and practise. The lack of taken for granted aspect of everyday life through consistent theoretical framework of seasonality in phenomenological approach the paper investigates how landscape resulted in necessity to conduct this research the researchers experience and explicate phenomenon and required to focus on selection of appropriate of seasonality. methodology. The part of investigation results were presented on The research questions set for this paper are – what the 17th Annual International Scientific Conference seasonality consists of and how landscape scientists “Research for Rural Development” of the Latvia understand season’s phenomenon. The target of University of Agriculture held in Jelgava, research is to find components for concept of Latvia in 2011. Data As a research data were used five selected Due to the research method used these were articles from book “Seasonal Landscapes” considered as verbal data. H. Palang, A. Printsmann, & H. Soovali (Eds.) Landscape series, volume 7, (2007) Springer [7]. 99 Proceedings of the Latvia University of Agriculture Landscape Architecture and Art, Volume 3, Number 3 1) Dodgshon, R. A., & Olsson, E. A. Seasonality in 5) Stobbelaar, D. J., & Hendriks, K. Seasonality of European Mountain Areas: A Study in Human Agricultural Landscapes: Reading Time and Ecology [2]. Place by Colours and Shapes [10]. 2) Jones, M. Seasonality and Landscape in This book is a part of research project Northern Europe: An Introductory exploration [3]. “Nordic Dimension in European Cultural 3) Lindstrom, K. From Experiential to Landscape” supported by Nordic Grant Scheme that Chronometric Seasonality – The Establishment previously resulted in (1) a Nordic research course of Seasons as a National Symbol in “Landscape and Seasonality” held at Roosta in Modern Japan [6]. Estonia in 2003 and (2) a special issue on seasonal 4) Palang, H., Printsmann, A., & Soovali, H. landscapes of the journal “Landscape Research” in Seasonality and Landscapes [8]. 2005 [4]. Due to above mentioned it is reliable for completeness of theoretic framework. Methods To answer a research questions – what concept of analysis. Content analysis is useful for identifying seasonality consists of and how landscape scientists both conscious and unconscious messages understand season’s phenomenon – as a most communicated by text – what is stated explicitly as appropriate research method inferred was content well as what is implied or revealed by the manner in analysis. The articles or verbal data has which content is expressed. Research approach was a lot of recurrences. By reading through the entirely inductive – beginning with deep close reading articles of book “Seasonal Landscapes” [7] and of text and searching for words, phrases, excerpts “Landscape Research” in 2005 [4] the answer on characterising and describing seasonality concept in research questions was totally opaque. The aim for the landscape, simultaneously attempting to uncover use of this method was to break construct of the the less obvious contextual or latent content therein. narrative in the pieces of excerpts or words. It is based It was an iterative process – revisiting categories on semiotic assumption that word is a sign. identified previously and combining or dividing them, The method applied based on The Sage encyclopedia resolving contradictions, as the text is analysed over of qualitative research methods [9, 120]. Lester notes and over with an ongoing connection with the that „phenomenology is concerned with the study of data [8, 120]. experience from the perspective of the individual, There are two weaknesses of the method [9, 120]. ‘bracketing’ taken-for-granted assumptions and usual (1) Because of context dependent meaning and ways of perceiving” [5]. Thus the overall research interpretation subjectivity dependent on researcher - approach for this paper is phenomenology with in qualitative content analysis, a reliability coefficient a content analysis used as a tool. The research was of 0.60 is considered acceptable. (2) Content analysis designed with a minimum structure and reasonably is time consuming due necessity to go deep into texts maximum depth. (words, phrases) and because of need for iterative Content analysis is the intellectual process of analyses. Also it can be accomplished using very low- categorizing qualitative textual data into clusters of tech materials such as a pencil and paper. similar themes, to identify consistent patterns and The strength of the method which approved later in relationships between them. Qualitative content research is – by breaking the construct of narrative the analysis is sometimes referred to as latent content probability to relieve the latent content increases. Results For building up seasonality concept for landscape was set intentionally. Other categories rose architecture the research resulted in five key themes or from research. distinct thematic categories – ‘time’, ‘human’, ‘space’, The crucial character for expression of seasonality ‘architecture’ and ‘phenomenon’ with several is time. The findings for concept of seasonality on the subcategories each. The findings are stated into component identified as ‘time’ are stated in Table 1. Table 1 to 5. To illustrate findings more transparently In this category there were identified six subcategories the direct quotations are used. Despite the fact that labelled as ‘change’, ‘rhythm’, ‘period’, ‘calendar’, some quotations were relevant to more than one ‘spacetime’ and ‘coherence’. All subcategories reached category or theme they were included only once. point of saturation. The subcategories ‘spacetime’ and All categories are related to and complement each ‘coherence’ is closely related to category ‘space’. other. Despite the fact that some quotations were The subcategory ‘coherence’ is complemental to relevant to more than one category or subcategory they category ‘phenomenon’.