Thesis

Fig 1. A Mind Map: Translational Practice Informs the Project.

Through translational practice (Fig 1), Dou and Lam investigate urban-nature relations, gathering insights that inform their conceptualization of a courtyard exhibition. This exhibition aims to communicate a belief that without nature, humans are incomplete. This is a manifestation of their research and insights into the dynamic relationship between our built environments and the natural world. As they engage with a wide range of artistic and scholarly sources (discussed in individual submissions), Dou and Lam curate the courtyard exhibition Our Playground: Growing out of the Establishment (Fig 2), which uses the courtyard as a poignant analogy for urban nature, straddling the realms of architectural infrastructure and a verdant garden.

Fig 2. Our Playground: Growing out of the Establishment. Exhibition view, Art Building Courtyard, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 2023. Photo: Rosaline Dou.