Life of the Patch — Emma J Davis

Life of the Patch. 2025. Collage. 420 x 297 mm.

Life of the Patch (2025) is a research-driven project developed through fieldwork within the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria. Through drawing, mapping, photography, and material studies, the project investigates relationships between landscape, ecology, and interior.

Life of the Patch
Scope: Spatial Design
Type: Site analysis, site-specific installation
Location: Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria (Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country)
Status: Project completed in the design studio, Towards an Ecological Interior at RMIT in 2025, supervised by Hannah Moriarty with guest lecturer Dr Alastair Reed.
Year: 2025

The research began through sustained observation of two ecological patches and the shifting conditions emerging between them. Attention gradually shifted toward transitional zones — subtle thresholds defined by changes in visibility, light penetration, enclosure, movement, and spatial permeability. Site mappings traced paths, sightlines, and environmental variations across the landscape, examining how spatial meaning emerges through intervals, relationships, and moments of transition.

Site mapping ‘Eucalyptus Patch’ (EP) and ‘Rainforest Patch’ (RP). 2025. Collage. 297 x 420 mm.

‘Rainforest Patch’ (RP) looking North-East at 12:02, 2025. Photo. 297 x 420 mm.

‘Rainforest Patch’ (RP) looking North-East at 12:06, 2025. Drawing. 297 x 420 mm.

‘Eucalyptus Patch’ (EP) looking South at 12:45, 2025. Photo. 297 x 420 mm.

‘Eucalyptus Patch’ (RP) looking South at 12:48, 2025. Drawing. 297 x 420 mm.

Influenced by the ecological condition of the ecotone and the Japanese concept of ma, the project approaches space as relational, temporal, and continuously evolving rather than fixed or enclosed. Working through the lenses of Time, Space, Organic, and Inorganic, the research documents cycles of growth, decay, movement, and environmental change.

Life of the Patch. 2025. Collage. 420 x 297 mm.

Site-specific installation

The project culminated in a site-specific installation using transparency, layering, and natural light to translate observed spatial conditions into an interior framework. Drawings, photographs, and material studies formed a layered visual archive and glass drawing that extended the investigation into questions of perception, atmosphere, and spatial depth.

Visualising the site analysis, installation mock-up. 2025. Digital collage. 420 x 297 mm.

Installation view: Visualising the site analysis. 2025.

Spatial Design, Art & Research
Email: Emma@emmajdavis.com

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