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LAA250 Landscape Conception

Credits (ECTS):15

Course responsible:Marius Fiskevold

Campus / Online:Taught campus Ås

Teaching language:Norsk

Limits of class size:40 students.

Course frequency:Annually

Nominal workload:375 hours

Teaching and exam period:This course starts in Spring parallel. This course has teaching/evaluation in Spring parallel.

About this course

The course is based on lectures, seminars, workshops, tutoring and group projects. The course provides an overview of theory and practice relating to landscape planning and landscape assessment on a municipal scale. The European Landscape Convention will be introduced and its relevance for landscape assessment and landscape planning will be highlighted.

The course aims at developing the students’ ability to produce and convey landscape analyses and planning concepts through professional argumentation. Assignments in the course will focus on group work and individual work alike. Theories and methods that have been introduced in the course shall serve as reference in the work with assignments.

Learning outcome

At the end of this course students would have had the opportunity to obtain and experience the following:

A. Knowledge and understanding of:

  • landscape as a key component in place making.
  • landscape analysis as an argumentative tool in planning.
  • landscape as a material product, part of social formation and a basis for individual identity.
  • place as an interface between humans, tradition and nature.
  • the contextual relevance of landscape: The culture historical, ecological and geological dimensions of place and landscape.
  • the relevance of scale when working with landscape.

B. Skills and experience in

  • using and reflecting on relevant landscape analysis methods.
  • analysing spatial data through the use of digital tools, layout maps and photographic material.
  • developing the skill to produce a creative analytical concept and visionary plans.
  • applying various graphic, textual and oral presentation skills and techniques in order to convey spatial information, concepts and plans.
  • participate in and contribute to interdisciplinary group work.
  • organizing your own studies.

C. General competences, such as

  • Understanding of the planner’s role in landscape planning
  • Understanding of oneself as part of a planning tradition and the importance of taking independent, professional decision.
  • Understanding of the connection between concepts and terms, scenarios thinking and planning ideals.
  • Understanding the connection between physical experience and linguistic utterances about them.

  • Lectures, readings, supervisions, group led seminars, group and individual assignments, excursions.

    The teaching will partly be online, partly based on physical attendance.

  • Supervision, demonstrations, feedback during seminars and presentations.
  • Basic courses from either of the two study programmes Landscape architecture or Urban and regional planning. IT knowledge is needed to carry out assignments, in particular GIS, CAD and Adobe programmes

  • Individual home exam (one week).

    Identical or near identical submissions will be evaluated with F and the course will not be considered for grading (decisions are made by external sensor and responsible teacher).

    A - F

    The course must be completed again and in its entirety, if it is not completed.



  • An external sensor will evaluate the assignment.

  • Follwing activites are mandatory and has to be passed to qualify the student for grading evaluation:

    • Individual assignment.
    • Landscape- and place analysis (group assignment).
    • Exercises (more information will be given at the course introdution), seminars, plenary presentations and supervision. Minimum 80 % participation is mandatory.

    All assignments must be delivered within the given deadlines and be passed.

    Students must pay for any travel and expenses related to compulsory activities.

  • Participants in this course must expect that the teaching will be conducted in both English and Norwegian.
  • Ca. 25 hours of lectures, ca. 20 hours of presentations, ca. 25 hours of seminars.
  • Students from M-LA, 2nd year
  • Minimum requirements for entrance to higher education in Norway (generell studiekompetanse)