Ecosophies: Field/Mesh/Transversality
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Abstract
Ecosophies: Field/Mesh/Transversality is a practice-led design research project undertaken for a Master of Art & Design in the field of Spatial Design. The project explores the ontology of ecology through philosophical notions of mesh, transversality, immanence and transcendental empiricism, developed by thinkers whose work is being increasingly adopted by ecology practitioners. The significance of the project lies in its translation of ecological and ontological notions into the field of design and design practices. It demonstrates how design approaches to physical geographical sites gain significant understanding of design potentials via a mesh ontology or transversality. Through the development of transversality as a methodology, the notions of group and group analysis, from the field of psychoanalysis, are placed into the setting of ecological design process and design locale, revealing an immanent relationality of a site. In the face of ecological crisis, globally and locally, the project addresses a design process that ensures all aspects of site and its wider ecologies are engaged as immanent to the univocity of the design field. Mapping is presented as the key method of a transversal methodology. Through an understanding of transcendental empiricism, mapping is able to reveal virtualities of a site and reveal site as potential. The mappings in the project are explored through three modalities of composition—the plane of reference, plane of concepts and plane of percepts/affects. It is through these three planes of consistency, function and composition that a series of interventions developed during candidature were created and critiqued to refine the process to a final series of elements. This research project presents an ecological approach to design and design thinking—one that considers the site in its entirety and maximises its potential futures in a holistic, ecological manner.