The politics of aesthetics: Expanding the critique of Headland Park, Sydney

Abstract

In 2005 an international competition was announced for the redevelopment of an important post-industrial site on the edge of Sydney Harbour. This paper focuses on Headland Park, the redevelopment's showcase open space, which is expected to be completed by 2015. The design positions nature in the city in its most literal sense, recreating the naturalistic form of the headland prior to its extensive modification to accommodate maritime functions. While this design direction is dismissed by many as nostalgic, critique has proven difficult, hampered by political influence, the kudos of employing an international designer and the tendency to reduce the design vocabulary of landscape architecture ..