Engaging Spontaneity

Engaging Spontaneity sits at the junction between what are defined as urban and natural landscapes. A dualism exists between the two that suggests that they are mutually exclusive, that the urban environment is human and that the natural environment is non-human, yet the physical world is not so clearly divided. Productive spontaneous ecologies are a constant presence in our cities whilst restored landscapes that are perceived as natural are often highly designed and artificial. Engaging Spontaneity seeks to disrupt this dualism by blurring the definitions of ‘urban’ and ‘natural’, suggesting that they are merely social constructs used to describe different conditions of the same, greater environment. 

Engaging Spontaneity proposes a system that tactically exaggerates and suppresses the capacity for Melbourne’s Moonee Ponds Creek to generate spontaneous ecologies. This is curated in such a way that promotes social engagement with their dynamic nature that is intended shift the negative light through which they are perceived. Both ecological and social spontaneity with be facilitated, prompting human and non-human interactions through a singular system that can be defined as neither urban nor natural.