ABSTRACT
We have several times remarked on the dominance of the visual in the world of landscape, and it is time to counteract that to an extent. The European Landscape Convention (ELC) merely refers to perception, and few would insist that we perceive our surroundings only through our eyes, although the commentary on the Convention text by a panel of experts again presumes the primacy of sight. Certainly that primacy is deep within the history of the concept of landscape, one major strand of which has lain firmly within the visual arts. Also the wilderness landscape is largely about scenery, and even the cultural landscape mode is heavily skewed to what can be seen. If your idea of landscape is largely pictorial then there is little point in listening to it or smelling it! The student needs to be constantly aware of this visual primacy occurring in landscape discourse, as a great deal of time can be wasted, as always, by eventually discovering that the two proponents of the discourse have differing concepts of the topic at hand. The primacy can soon be dented by taking an interest in poetry or novels where the landscape is a major actor. Despite many lyrical passages describing what can be seen, writers typically spend even longer describing the sounds of the landscape and the feeling underfoot. Laurie Lee’s CiderwithRosie would be an excellent example.
