The Structure of Beauty: Informal Green Spaces in Their Users’ Eyes

Beata Joanna Gawryszewska (), Maciej Łepkowski, Łukasz Pietrych, Anna Wilczyńska and Piotr Archiciński
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Beata Joanna Gawryszewska: Department of Landscape Art, Institute of Environmental Engineering, Warsaw University of Life Sciences—SGGW, Nowoursynowska 166 Street, 02-787 Warsaw, Poland
Maciej Łepkowski: Department of Landscape Art, Institute of Environmental Engineering, Warsaw University of Life Sciences—SGGW, Nowoursynowska 166 Street, 02-787 Warsaw, Poland
Łukasz Pietrych: Department of Econometrics and Statistics, Institute of Economics and Finance, Warsaw University of Life Sciences—SGGW, Nowoursynowska 166 Street, 02-787 Warsaw, Poland
Anna Wilczyńska: Institute of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Estonian University of Life Sciences, 51006 Tartu, Estonia
Piotr Archiciński: Department of Remote Sensing and Environmental Research, Warsaw University of Life Sciences—SGGW, Nowoursynowska 166 Street, 02-787 Warsaw, Poland

Sustainability, 2024, vol. 16, issue 4, 1-19

Abstract: Informal Green Spaces (IGS) in towns and cities are areas of varied appearance, representing a wide range of aesthetic values. In this study, we have focused on how users perceive such space and which elements match some particular values. Based on the analysis of photographic images taken by chosen IGS visitors, the technique called Visitor-Employed Photography (VEP), we elicited three primary groups of IGS images, namely landscape, scenery, and special elements. It is possible to define several visual structures in each category, with highly preferable spatial fragments and particular attributes. They are aesthetic prototypes, centers of aesthetic preferences among users of informal green areas. Recognizing proximity to the preference core allows us to define the preferred IGS landscape aesthetics. Based on the data collected, we have concluded that IGS users prefer vast grass areas, dense groups of trees and shrubs, water, and the absence of anthropogenic elements.

Keywords: city greenery; aesthetic preferences; visitor-employed photography; hotspot analysis; bottom-up greenery; informal park (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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