“Cloudism”

Abstract

A conceptual revolution has taken place in the culture of making landscape architecture. ‘Cloudism’ is a term to describe a new art of thinking and making landscape architecture that uses point cloud modelling as a base. It finds a broad range of applications in the practice of architecture, urban design, landscape architecture, and engineering. It is an entirely new mode of design that facilitates the assessment and conception of landscapes through all scales. Within the next decade, cloudist techniques will become commonplace in landscape architecture research, teaching, and practice. The technology invites practitioners to think of landscape architecture differently, broadening its conceptual scope, scale, and sphere. Possible applications range from river flood management and landslip control in remote areas, to large-scale coastal protection in and around large urban areas. A selection of examples shows the range of experiments that have used point clouds in site reconnaissance, modelling, and design from the scale of the garden to that of the territory. Landscape architecture is entering a phase of development where designs will be tested and evaluated prior to implementation. Cloudism offers a new horizon that will bring much-needed changes to the design, analysis, and production of landscapes.