Landscape design and the language of nature

Recognition that we need to live in a more ecologically sustainable way and that the physical forms of designed landscapes are an expression of the social values and cultural drivers of the time has underpinned the call by some landscape design professionals for a new design aesthetic – one that reflects modern ecological concerns. However, for an 'ecological aesthetic' to be accepted, it must be capable of generating landscape forms that are pleasurable to the general public, as it is the general public who will be responsible for delivering ecological sustainability in the long term. The growth in understanding of the mathematical properties of natural systems and processes has led some authors to suggest that fractal geometry, called the language of nature, could play a role in developing such an aesthetic. This is supported by recent research that suggests human perceptual systems have evolved to process fractal patterning and that we have a visual preference for images with certain fractal qualities. However, how fractal geometry can be used, and what form an aesthetic based on this geometry might take, remains elusive and undefined. To develop an aesthetic based on fractal geometry it is necessary to understand why fractal geometry should be considered as a potential tool and whether the application of fractal analysis can differentiate between the types of landscape forms encountered every day.