Am 23.10.2025 ab 18 Uhr hält Dr. Maria Faust (Technische Universität Chemnitz) einen Onlinevortrag mit dem Titel „Digital Senses, Analogue Landscapes? – A De-Westernized Approach of Landscape Epistemologies in Germany and China„, in dem sie untersucht, wie tiefe Mediatisierung und Digitalisierung unsere sinnliche Wahrnehmung von Landschaften in Deutschland und China verändert und zu einer zunehmend zweidimensionalen, von Sehen und Hören dominierten Landschaftserfahrung führt.

Landscape research is often situated in the Anthropocene (Dark Economies Research Group, 2023), and offers only few aspects that touch upon deep mediatization and digitalization (Jorge, 2024; Olwig, 1996; Stäheli, 2021). Moreover, de-Westernized, comparative and especially East Asian approaches are scarce (Djabarouti & Ren, 2024; Taylor & Qing, 2019). Beyond a Western approach – namely Germany –, we place particular emphasis on China as it is leading in climate protection technology with at the same time the most greenhouse gas emissions in total worldwide (Westermann, 2024) Moreover, Cosgrove notes, that the question of landscape epistemologies remains unresolved (Cosgrove, 2004, p. 54), especially under the conditions of deep mediatization. Thus, we have to ask:

Research Question: What are the epistemologies of sensory perception of landscape under the conditions of deep mediatization in both Germany and China?
Consequently, the research objective will unpack how digital media has changed our sensory perceptual experience of landscape and the world we live in and how this relates to aura and authenticity formation of landscape. Through the understanding of visual, auditory, tactile, olfactory, gustatory and equilibrium-related alterations caused by the virtual, will it be possible to contribute to an understanding of the sensory experience of the non-mediated landscape sphere. The findings suggest that the dominance of sight and sound leads to a vanishing of other sensory input forms and landscape perception becomes increasingly two-dimensional. Moreover, this new sensory perceptual experience will manifest new forms of aura and authenticity and create a paradoxical relationship between landscape and digital media. Conclusively, both China and Germany need counter-trends to regain belonging to nature which contributes to an overall improvement of well-being.

Die Vortragssprache ist Englisch. Bei Fragen kontaktieren Sie uns unter: ostasienabt@sbb.spk-berlin.de.

Der Vortrag wird via Webex gestreamt und aufgezeichnet*. Sie können am Vortrag über Ihren Browser ohne Installation einer Software teilnehmen. Klicken Sie dazu unten auf „Zum Vortrag“, folgen dem Link „Über Browser teilnehmen“ und geben Ihren Namen ein.

Alle bislang angekündigten Vorträge finden Sie hier. Die weiteren Termine kündigen wir in unserem Blog und auf unserem X-Account, Mastodon und BlueSky an.

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On October 23, 2025, from 6 pm, Dr. Maria Faust (Chemnitz University of Technology) will give an online lecture titled „Digital Senses, Analogue Landscapes? – A De-Westernized Approach of Landscape Epistemologies in Germany and China,“ in which she examines how deep mediatization and digitalization are changing our sensory perception of landscapes in Germany and China, leading to an increasingly two-dimensional landscape experience dominated by sight and sound.

Landscape research is often situated in the Anthropocene (Dark Economies Research Group, 2023), and offers only few aspects that touch upon deep mediatization and digitalization (Jorge, 2024; Olwig, 1996; Stäheli, 2021). Moreover, de-Westernized, comparative and especially East Asian approaches are scarce (Djabarouti & Ren, 2024; Taylor & Qing, 2019). Beyond a Western approach – namely Germany –, we place particular emphasis on China as it is leading in climate protection technology with at the same time the most greenhouse gas emissions in total worldwide (Westermann, 2024) Moreover, Cosgrove notes, that the question of landscape epistemologies remains unresolved (Cosgrove, 2004, p. 54), especially under the conditions of deep mediatization. Thus, we have to ask:
Research Question: What are the epistemologies of sensory perception of landscape under the conditions of deep mediatization in both Germany and China?
Consequently, the research objective will unpack how digital media has changed our sensory perceptual experience of landscape and the world we live in and how this relates to aura and authenticity formation of landscape. Through the understanding of visual, auditory, tactile, olfactory, gustatory and equilibrium-related alterations caused by the virtual, will it be possible to contribute to an understanding of the sensory experience of the non-mediated landscape sphere. The findings suggest that the dominance of sight and sound leads to a vanishing of other sensory input forms and landscape perception becomes increasingly two-dimensional. Moreover, this new sensory perceptual experience will manifest new forms of aura and authenticity and create a paradoxical relationship between landscape and digital media. Conclusively, both China and Germany need counter-trends to regain belonging to nature which contributes to an overall improvement of well-being.

The lecture will be held in English. If you have any questions, please contact us: ostasienabt@sbb.spk-berlin.de.

The lecture will be streamed and recorded via Webex*. You can take part in the lecture using your browser without having to install a special software. Please click on the respective button “To the lecture” below, follow the link “join via browser” (“über Browser teilnehmen”), and enter your name.

You can find all previously announced lectures here. We will announce further dates in our blog and on X, Mastodon and BlueSky.

*Mit Ihrer Teilnahme an der Veranstaltung räumen Sie der Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz und ihren nachgeordneten Einrichtungen kostenlos alle Nutzungsrechte an den Bildern/Videos ein, die während der Veranstaltung von Ihnen angefertigt wurden. Dies schließt auch die kommerzielle Nutzung ein. Diese Einverständniserklärung gilt räumlich und zeitlich unbeschränkt und für die Nutzung in allen Medien, sowohl für analoge als auch für digitale Verwendungen. Sie umfasst auch die Bildbearbeitung sowie die Verwendung der Bilder für Montagen. / By participating, you grant the Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz and its subordinate institutions free of charge all rights of usage of pictures and videos taken of you during this lecture presentation. This declaration of consent is valid in terms of time and space without restrictions and for usage in all media, including analogue and digital usage. It includes image processing and the usage of photos in composite illustrations. German law will apply.

References
Cosgrove, D. (2004). Landscape and Landschaft. Bulletin of the German Historical Institute, 35(Fall), 57–73. Retrieved from https://www.ghi-dc.org/publication/bulletin-35-fall-2004
Dark Economies Research Group (2023). Haunted Landscapes: Nature, Super-Nature, and Global Environments. Retrieved from https://darkeconomies.co.uk/haunted-landscapes/
Djabarouti, J., & Ren, Y. (2024). Cultural convergence in heritage landscape conservation: A comparative study of Chinese and English traditions. Arts & Communication, 2(1), 1923. https://doi.org/10.36922/ac.1923
Jorge, A. (2024). (Dis)connected atmospheres: Tourist locations in dead zones in post-pandemic Portugal. Nordicom, University of Gothenburg. https://doi.org/10.48335/9789188855961-16
Olwig, K. R. (1996). Recovering the Substantive Nature of Landscape. Annals of the Association of American Geographers, 86(4), 630–653. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8306.1996.tb01770.x
Stäheli, U. (2021). Soziologie der Entnetzung. Suhrkamp Taschenbuch Wissenschaft: Vol. 2337. Berlin: Suhrkamp.
Taylor, K., & Qing, X. (2019). Challenging landscape Eurocentrism An Asian perspective. In P. Howard, I. H. Thompson, E. Waterton, & M. Atha (Eds.), Routledge companions. The Routledge companion to landscape studies (pp. 311–328). Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge.
Westermann, R. (2024, September 16). Grün in China investieren. Retrieved from https://eco-city-china.com/newsroom/artikel-1/gruen-in-china-investieren