Metaphor, Environmental Receptivity, and Architectural Design

With nature in mind: ‘Green metaphors’ as an approach to reflect environmental concerns and awareness in landscape design

“…This happens, Casakin (2004) explains, because when a metaphor becomes a part of a conceptual system it may modify it, change the designer's perception of a particular situation, and trigger new insights. Muller (2009) states that as environmental design develops new metaphors, it also modifies its own culture; the emerging identity formation of architectural culture results in new designs. According to Muller (2009), in order to meet the need for the development of life-enhancing and ecologically sustainable living spaces, the idea of developing better-performing, less wasteful, and less toxic building assemblies is insufficient.…”

“…Muller (2009) states that as environmental design develops new metaphors, it also modifies its own culture; the emerging identity formation of architectural culture results in new designs. According to Muller (2009), in order to meet the need for the development of life-enhancing and ecologically sustainable living spaces, the idea of developing better-performing, less wasteful, and less toxic building assemblies is insufficient. Instead, designers must engage in a more fundamental reflection as to how design problems are to be expressed and to what extent the potential for environmental change can be molded to new design expressions (Muller, 2009).…”

“…According to Muller (2009), in order to meet the need for the development of life-enhancing and ecologically sustainable living spaces, the idea of developing better-performing, less wasteful, and less toxic building assemblies is insufficient. Instead, designers must engage in a more fundamental reflection as to how design problems are to be expressed and to what extent the potential for environmental change can be molded to new design expressions (Muller, 2009). In the contemporary world, which is characterized by daily reminders of the degradation of our natural surroundings, such awareness of metaphors as productive agents of change would seem to encourage the seeking of notions that lead to greater environmental atonement (Muller, 2009).…”

“…Instead, designers must engage in a more fundamental reflection as to how design problems are to be expressed and to what extent the potential for environmental change can be molded to new design expressions (Muller, 2009). In the contemporary world, which is characterized by daily reminders of the degradation of our natural surroundings, such awareness of metaphors as productive agents of change would seem to encourage the seeking of notions that lead to greater environmental atonement (Muller, 2009). Similarly, Nerlich (2012) defines metaphors as some of the most potent framing devices available in human language with reference to environmental discourse and politics.…”

“…"Green metaphors" are results of such an awareness and understanding. Green metaphors in environmental design are accepted as an approach for reflecting environmental concern and believed to be productive agents of change in contemporary environmental design culture that encourage the seeking of notions that lead to greater human-environment harmony (Muller, 2009). As a kind of green metaphor, landscape-oriented metaphors reflect a larger cultural paradigm shift from human-centeredness to human-situatedness and can address the degradation of natural systems and the effacing of singular ecologies that characterize current development practices (Muller and Knudson, 2009).…”