Contemporary landscape and urban design cannot ignore the question of resources. When we build by following the classic sequence of idea–design–realisation, we rarely question the disposal of materials or the effort required to extract raw resources, process them, transport them, and put them in place. Materials, tools, human labour, and time are often underestimated—or entirely neglected—during the early design phase, only to become central concerns when it is time to negotiate the realisation of the idea.

This course approaches the public space as a set of performative actions that can redefine how we intervene in the urban realm—through temporal, human, and resource-aware practices. Students will engage directly with selected sites in Northern See and Oldenburg, becoming active agents in a performative landscape. Using the human body as the primary exploratory tool, participants will heighten their awareness of labour, effort, and the embodied nature of spatial transformation.

Through these situated actions, we will collectively investigate concepts such as fatigue, duration, scarcity, improvisation, and resilience within a broader perspective of performative ecology.

The course is entirely practice-based, complemented by theoretical inputs and references to land art, spatial activism, and experimental environmental practices.

The course develops critical knowledge and discussion around artistic and performative land art, drawing on both historical references and contemporary, situated practices. It expands conventional notions of placemaking by approaching space through the lens of performative action rather than predefined design outcomes. Students are encouraged to critically question the traditional sequence of idea–project–realisation, shifting attention toward alternative, active, and site-specific modes of intervention.