Starting somewhere

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Starting somewhere

My design research begins....

The following title and question try to frame the design research interest and attention. This is likely to be refined many times over during the course of the next 34weeks.

Scarred land:
Re-designing how open-cut mines in Australia are restored for public use

What scale and type of gesture is required in a landscape to render it desirable?
This is to be tested in a case study of open-cut mines in Australia; landscape that could be considered ‘undesirable’. The degree of barrenness and scale of these pits limit the regenerative possibilities, leaving a big black hole where unimaginative solutions have been sought.

How then can these mines relinquished?

There are three large open cut brown coal mines in the Latrobe Valley of Victoria, Australia. These all or at least one of these OC's (Open Cuts) will be my study area. Not only does the 'site' of investigation include the OC but also the overburden areas, cooling ponds, large power stations, other infrastructure and the community which supports the industry.