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Disclaimer This design is part of the student learning experience in 87831 VC Design Studio: Visual Communication and Emergent Practices Spring 2021 in the Faculty of Design Architecture and Built Environment (DAB) University of Technology Sydney (UTS) and is not a professional design outcome. This project was developed under the guidance of Elders, cultural advisors, research advisors and studio leaders. According to the intent of the subject, this design is not for public use (exhibition, web-based platform or otherwise) without obtaining adequate permissions.
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Acknowledgment
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Overview
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Research Methodology
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Self-Determination
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Core Resources
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Design-led Research
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Vodcast Comparison
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Acknowledgment I would like to acknowledge and pay my respects to the traditional custodians of the land on which I call home today; Guringai Country, home to the Garigal people of the Eora Nation. I pay my respects to the Indigenous elders past, present and emerging. I thank the Indigenous elders and researchers who have shared their knowledge with me and led me through this project.
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“ The land, a we treat it, determine human-ne
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(GRAHAM, 1999, P.106)
and how , is what es our ess.”
Overview This project is about the rediscovery, reconnection and reinvigoration of the natural ecologies that have been enveloped by the modern fabrications and facilities that exist in my backyard. I have engaged with my backyard through some of the arguments expressed in Some thoughts about the philosophical
underpinnings of Aboriginal worldviews (Graham, 1999), as well as the through a selection of the methodologies of ‘intervening’ and ‘connecting’, as explored in Decolonizing Methodologies: Research and Indigenous Peoples, (Tuhiwai Smith, 2012).
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Indigenous Research Principle & Methodologies Respect In alignment with the Indigenous research principle of respect, I have approached my project through the framework of reactivating the displaced or hidden ecologies found in this public park and beach space at Robertson Street, Narrabeen. What I have discovered whilst exploring my backyard is that much of the natural flora has been squashed or built over in place of modern fabrications and facilities.
These modifications, and perhaps, objectifications of the natural flora conduit a highly Westernised ideology of what community interaction with public land should look like. Within the framework of showing respect to Country then, this project set out to acknowledge, reinvigorate and care for the land as a means of displacing the colonial perspectives of owning and controlling.
(ARCHIBALD, ET AL,. 2019)
Intervening
Connecting
This is the process of implementing intervention based projects on Country, which are designed around the basis of making cultural and structural changes. This research principle operates at the core of my project, which focuses on synthesising the interventions between flora and unnatural elements.
This process positions a sense of connectedness in an individuals relationship with their environment. My project speaks to this research principle in its attempt to reintroduce and reintegrate a greater sense of awareness of the natural systems and ecologies in my backyard.
(TUHIWAI SMITH, 2012)
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Actioning Indigenous Self-Determination In alignment with the Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property (ICIP) protocols, my methodology and ensuing design research methods have sought to action Indigenous self-determination. Indigenous cultural knowledge, material and property must be respected (R. Quiggin, Wiradjuri, Central Western NSW, Australia, Zoom Lecture, UTS, 2021), and so throughout this project it was critical that my visual methods respected and acknowledged Indigenous
culture. The work I have presented offers a respect and recognition for the land I live on, thereby acknowledging Indigenous People’s rights to their heritage and culture (Terri Janke and Company, 2018). I have also ensured an acknowledgment of the voices and teachings that the Indigenous elders, cultural advisors and studio leader have provided throughout the process.
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Indigenous cultural material continues to have meaning despite the destruction it may have survived. (R. QUIGGIN, WIRADJURI, CENTRAL WESTERN NSW, AUSTRALIA, ZOOM LECTURE, 2021)
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Core Resources “Some thoughts about the philosophical underpinnings of Aboriginal worldviews” Graham identifies the role of Country in Aboriginal culture, in which she explains the deep understanding and respect that Indigenous communities have for Country in order to evoke meaning and stability. Graham uses Aboriginal philosophy to ground this argument, whereby the land is viewed as a spiritual entity that requires custodianship and kinship. This piece also operates to underscore the friction
between the philosophies underpinning Aboriginal culture and the destructiveness of Western ideology on ecological, political and social frameworks. This reading played a crucial role in my project, offering a rich exploration of the ways Aboriginal philosophies can be used to protect our ecology and social frameworks, which have been tarnished by Western ideology and those interpretations of Country.
(GRAHAM, 1999)
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It resides in the relationship between the human spirit and the natural life force. (GRAHAM, 1999, P.110)
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Core Resources “Decolonising Methodologies: Research & Indigenous Peoples” This text played a pivotal role in shaping the methodological frameworks in my project by explaining the existence and cruciality of decolonising methodologies as a means of reclaiming, reformulating and reconstituting Indigenous culture. The reading operates as an exploration of the pursuit for social justice and cultural restoration, maintenance and healing of oppressed groups through key Indigenous research projects. Tuhiwai Smith denotes the need for transposition from solely natural and physical sciences or technological research methods/outcomes, rather to also
focus on the social sciences within an Indigenous framework to ensure researchers, academics and practitioners can effectively decolonise their writing and respective practices. The key decolonising methodologies I applied to my own design research included the principles of ‘intervening’ and ‘connecting’. This text explored the necessary frameworks and methodological approaches for ensuring a respect of Indigenous culture and land. More importantly, it made the decolonisation of my own design research on and from Country certain.
(TUHIWAI SMITH, 2012)
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Cultural survival, selfdetermination, healing, restoration and social justice are engaging Indigenous researchers and communities. (TUHIWAI SMITH, 2012, P.238)
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Method 1 Drawing Country
Key Insights & Learnings
This is the process of tracing the topography of a place (landscape formations, ocean currents, atmospheric patterns etc), which helps to strengthen ones engagement and connection to Country. This practice acknowledges ones respect for the ground and allows for a richer recognition of the shape and formation of Country (Gothe, 2015). The Drawing Country method can be linked to the early works of Emma Kunz (1892–1964), by which she created abstract geometric visualisations of the flow and energy of a place; the invisible energies.
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This initial design research method was a great place to start the project, operating as a broader acknowledgment and personal introduction to the geographic details of my backyard. Within the Indigenous research framework of respect, the geomorphological illustrations conduit an “embodied respect for place” through the performative act of tracing the natural formations on Country (Gothe, 2015).
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A visual exploration/education on the formal land and water formations in my backyard Tracing the topography by hand made me appreciate and connect to the landscape by taking the time to closely observe the reference maps and images The large fluctuations in land heights is something I hadn’t previously taken much care to, as the hills and bushland are covered in houses. It made me appreciate the natural foundation that lay beneath the houses and apartment buildings; one that rises and falls so dramatically in height. I learnt that there were small rivers that flow into Narrabeen lake, which also flows out to sea The steep topography around the lake makes it feel almost like a valley, something I hadn’t taken notice of previously
The Drawing Country design research approach helped me unlock new knowledge on the formations of the natural structures that coalesce on Country, but more importantly offered gestures of respect to my backyard in the visual acknowledgment and representation of the natural details.
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Tracing land elevation contours
Tracing bushland and vegetation
Tracing water depth contours
Tracing waterways
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Method 2 Participatory Sound Mapping
Key Insights & Learnings
Sound maps are defined as a visual representation of the sonic landscape of something; in this case my backyard. These sound maps are created by analysing and connecting specific sounds to a set of design rules or visual interpretations. The origins of the sound map can be linked to the work of field recordists from the 1960 ‘World Soundscape Project’ at Vancouver’s Simon Fraser University. The team collected and analysed sounds from composer R. Murray Schafer’s ‘soundscapes’, where the sounds heard were plotted onto visual maps, which would eventually become part of the 1977 ‘European Sound Diary’ publication (Nieto, 2016).
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I chose this design research method to illustrate the paradoxical relationships between the various sounds in my backyard. It allowed me to visually map the way sound is operating in my backyard, and in doing so dissected the harmony and/or dissonance between the natural ecology and unnatural elements in the space. Documenting the sonic landscape of my backyard in this way helped address the following: a) Acknowledging the sounds of the natural ecology will help to activate and pay respect to Country b) Highlight the incongruity between the sounds of nature and unnatural contributors.
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The soundscape of my backyard is quite jarring. There is an incongruence between the peaceful bird song, the waves crashing and trees rustling in the wind, which is intersecting with the loud car engines, kids screaming, horns honking and construction noises. It feels as if nature is competing with the ‘Colonisers’ in a way. It was only through the lens of this design research technique that the dissonance of my backyard’s soundscape was apparent. I was previously naive to conflicts between the ecological and the fabricated.
Notice Yourself Noticing (N. DIXON, WIRADJURI/YUIN/GADIGAL, WESTERN SYDNEY, NSW, AUSTRALIA ZOOM CONSULTATION, 2021)
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Prompt – On a piece of paper, generate some free-hand drawings, these can be abstract marks, that reflect your perception of the soundscape, take a picture or scan these into this board.
Prompt – Through any means, explore the colours you associated with the sounds you heard. Prompt – Either abstractly or on a graph, map your emotional journey through the soundscapes. How does the sound make you feel? Are you at peace and grounded, or agitated and uncomfortable, or happy and excited?
Unified Map – Sound map using the 1 minute soundscape and the ideas illustrated in each of the participants visual responses.
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Method 3 Qualitative Illustrative Analysis
Key Insights & Learnings
This approach can be described as the subjective analysis of the qualities of something, in this case analysing the flora in my backyard, using illustration over photography. Visual methodologies such as this help us to better understand and interpret images (Barbour, 2014). This approach in particular conduits the use of perception rather than fixed data in an attempt to comprehend the behaviors and motivations of the elements and intersections operating on Country (ShiftComm, 2021).
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I chose this design research method because the performative act of photographing and illustrating helped me analyse the immediate and broader qualities of the flora in the space. This method enabled a richer interpretation of the context and interactions between nature and unnatural in my backyard. This design research method also helped to identify and reinvigorate the hidden ecologies of my backyard that have been squashed and hidden by the built environment.
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This exercise allowed me to see past the fabrications and acknowledge the original landscape through qualitative sketching I had not previously payed much attention to what plant life still existed there, which helped me reintroduce myself to Country in this sense I started to realise, and feel saddened by, what the council had done to this space in order to cater to the ‘Colonisers’; an inauthentic manipulation of Country.
Sit Observe Inhabit (R. DIXON-GROVERNOR, DHARUG/YUIN ELDER, WESTERN SYDNEY, NSW, AUSTRALIA, ZOOM CONSULTATION, 2021)
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Method 4 Photography as Research
Key Insights & Learnings
This approach is defined by the use of photography to capture the core aspects of something, that of which is dependent on the particular research framework. In this case, it was used to capture the overarching concept for this research project; how the natural ecology and unnatural constructions intersect, coexist or conflict on Country.
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At each intersection between nature and construction there is an embedded conflict between the ecology trying to fight its way through or simply co-exist with the inauthentic; almost as if it’s fighting back against the built environment and attempting to reclaim the space. The fabrications/structures are always met by plant life and bushland in some form Some of the plant life is not original/native to the area and has been imposed into the land after the fact by Council.
I chose to work with photography as research based on the fact that photo’s enable an extremely rich visual analysis of the subjects, and can be curated to collate, uncover and drive key ideas. The underlying intentions for using this method were to accurately display the characteristics of my backyard as seen and experienced by the users of the space.
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How do we come to terms with the darker side of modernity? (T. SCHULTZ, KAMILIROI, GOLD COAST, QLD, AUSTRALIA, ZOOM LECTURE, 2021)
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Method 5 Intervention Mapping
Key Insights & Learnings
This approach is defined by mapping the relationships and/or conflicts between the natural and unnatural structures operating in my backyard, achieved through sectional snapshot illustrations.
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This design research method can be linked to the standard architectural drawing type, but more interestingly this process of cutting through an object, or in my case the geographic structures, to produce a cross-section can be linked to the “Scratching the Surface” project by Amanda Wong; describing the process as “unearthing new ways of seeing” (Wong, 2019). Slicing through objects or landscapes in this context provides researchers with the capacity to examine the intricacies and layer structure in both a formal and conceptual manner.
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There is a broad mixture of macro interactions and micro interactions between ecology and the unnatural This exercise exposed the fabricated co-existence of plant life and unnatural structures; in some way or another the ecology is always in a state of conflict, intersection or forced synchronisation with what has been built into Country
The implementation of this approach helped to further articulate the intersections between nature and the built environment. This method was both analytical and interpretive, and the act of illustrating the cross-sections here provided interesting material for a formal and semiotic analysis of these portions of my backyard.
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Observe the betweenness (T. SCHULTZ, KAMILIROI, GOLD COAST, QLD, AUSTRALIA, ZOOM LECTURE, 2021)
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Vodcast Comparison
Geographic Boundaries & Formal Description of Country FIRST VODCAST – PRESENTING MY BACKYARD
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Intersections between the natural ecology & built environment FIRST VODCAST – RE-PRESENTING MY BACKYARD WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF INDIGENOUS RESEARCH PRINCIPLE ‘RESPECT’
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Insights & Reflection 01 02 03 04
I recognise that we must re-contextualise and reshape our prior knowledge of Australian and Indigenous histories, as well as our perception and treatment of Country. I understand the way colonisation has effected social and environmental systems, as well shaping how we perceive the world around us. I have developed a deeper understanding and cultural sensitivity to Indigenous worldviews, particularly how they can be used to facilitate social and environmental stability. I recognise the importance of actioning Indigenous Self-Determination and applying a decolonising psyche within the context of my own future practice.
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Indigenous stories, experiences, & understandings are at the core of the meaning-making process. (ARCHIBALD, ET AL,. 2019)
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References Archibald, J., Lee-Morgan, J.B.J., & De Santolo, J. (2019). Decolonising Research: Indigenous Storywork as Methodology. Zed Books.
Kearney, J. Intern, A. & Janke, T. (2018). Rights to Culture: Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property (ICIP), Copyright and Protocols. Terri Janke and Company.
Banks, M. (2001). Visual Methods in Social Research. Sage. Barbour, B. (2014). Introducing qualitative research: A student’s guide. Sage.
Khandwala, A. (2019). What Does It Mean to Decolonize Design? Eye on Design. AIGA. https://eyeondesign.aiga.org/what-does-it-mean-to decolonize-design/
Dixon, N. (2021). (Wiradjuri/Yuin/Gadigal, Western Sydney, NSW, Australia) [Virtual Consultation]. UTS
Nieto, M. (2016). Sound Maps in the 21st Century: Where Do We Go From Here? MediaTeletipos. http://www.mediateletipos.net/archives/39689
Dixon-Grovenor, R. (2021). Reframing the story; an Indigenous lens on climate action. (Dharug/Yuin Elder, Western Sydney, NSW, Australia) [Zoom lecture]. UTS.
Quiggin, R. (2021). Indigenous Cultural Intellectual Property Rights. (Wiradjuri, Central Western NSW, Australia). [Zoom lecture]. UTS.
Glaw, X., Inder, K., Kable, A., & Hazelton, M. (2017). Visual Methodologies in Qualitative Research: Autophotography and Photo Elicitation Applied to Mental Health Research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods. 16(1), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1177/1609406917748215 Gothe, J. (2015) Tracing Country: Visual Communication Design and Chorography. Towards a critical practice in visual communication design [Doctor of Philosophy Thesis]. School of Law, Humanities and the Arts, University of Wollongong. https://ro.uow.edu.au/theses/4614 Graham, M. (1999). Some thoughts about the philosophical underpinnings of Aboriginal worldviews. Worldviews: Global Religions, Culture, and Ecology, 3(2), 105–118. Hanna, H. (2020). Photography as a Research Method with Learners in Compulsory Education: A Research Review. Beijing International Review of Education. 2(1), 11-34. https://doi.org/10.1163/25902539-00201003
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Rose, G. (2001). Visual Methodologies: An Introduction to Researching with Visual Materials. Sage. Schultz, T. (2021). Decoloniality & Design. (Kamiliroi, Gold Coast, QLD, Australia) [Zoom Lecture]. UTS ShiftComm. (2021). Understanding Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis. Shift. ShiftComm. https://www.shiftcomm.com/insights understanding-qualitative-quantitative-analysis/ Tuhiwai Smith, P. L. (2012). Decolonizing Methodologies: Research and Indigenous Peoples (2nd ed., pp. 238-269). Zed Books. Wong, A. (2019). Scratching the Surface: A Close Look at Cross Sections. Art Institute Chicago. https://www.artic.edu/articles/730/scratching the-surface-a-close-look-at-cross-sections
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