Artscape in the Hearthcote Valley

Abstract

The fusion of art and the ecological environmental ethos lies at the heart of Wendy Duggan's 2002 Major Design project at Lincoln University. In an attempt to restore the ecological health of the neglected Christchurch Heathcote River and Estuary floodplain Duggan explored how the notion of landscape as art could extend itself beyond both the gallery and the environmental art tradition to become what she coined as an artscape: an integration of landscape and art. Her challenge was to find the appropriate response to a site that is currently abused and seen as the "back doorstep" of industrial activity. By using the concept of art as the merger of ethics and aesthetics Duggan's design has the potential to change community perceptions and allow people to appreciate and enjoy ecological values that are inherent in an estuary environment.