A special element in its surroundings

This monograph came about based on papers presented by participants in the first KRAJart 2011 artistic-scientific conference entitled "Specific element in the environment" and a broad discussion conducted during meetings held on 13-16 September, 2011, which were organized by the Architecture Department of the School of Ecology and Management. Architects, interior architects, urbanists and landscape architects, as well as ecologists, gardeners and other specialists in the field of conservation and landscaping, representing agriculture and forestry, took part in the discussions. The goal of the conference, which consisted of five panels, was to find a multi-disciplinary solution based on a consensus regarding a particular element in the environment. The five panels were: a discussion of the contents of pre-conference publications, an exhibition of student work, an exhibition of professorial work, a multimedia presentation, and an outdoor art display. The profound and accurate comments of Professor Lucjan Kasprzak, presented in a review of the articles during the discussion - and which dealt with the haphazard nature of activities, ignorance, superficiality and pseudo-professionalism, pseudo-artistic and pseudo-scientific illusions, relativism and chaos - had a significant influence on the ultimate shape of the monograph. The contents presented in the following article deal with the meaning of particular element and architectural and artistic details in the design/artistic work made by creators in the inter-disciplinary academic environment. An in-depth analysis of the articles makes the reader aware of how varied the concept of particular elements may be by artists in the fields of urban design, landscape architecture, and interior architecture. A common factor linking individual attitudes is the tendency to create harmony by building a relation between the object and its environment, which should result in the complete professionalism of the project's work.