On the unrecognized significance of the ephemeral landscape

Abstract

This paper argues that the ephemeral components of the landscape have a significant, but hitherto unrecognized, effect upon the way in which it is perceived and evaluated. These ephemeral components, or landscape ephemera, are those which change with the weather, the seasons, the growth and decay of plants, the choice of farm crop, and so on. Their nature is explored, and they are contrasted with the more permanent components of the landscape, such as hedges, trees, buildings, etc. The importance of these changes is discussed in relation to landscape preference theories and the work of artists in various media. It is argued that landscape regulation and the landscape literature have largely ignored such changes, and it is tentatively suggested that further research and discussion on the topic might have some interesting results for landscape evaluation and planning.