| Abstract [eng] |
Hybrid rural–urban environments present growing challenges for architecture and design because they require ecological, cultural, and spatial values to be integrated within coherent design solutions. This study proposes a qualitative framework for identifying sustainability aesthetics archetypes that can support the interpretation and design of such hybrid environments through the integration of accessible artificial intelligence (AI) tools and author-based qualitative analysis. The research is based on a design experiment conducted with first-year Industrial Design Engineering students at Kaunas University of Technology during 2024–2025, resulting in a dataset of 43 modular spatial systems. Photographs of the design outcomes were analysed using user-friendly AI tools to generate image descriptions, semantic tags, colour palettes, and AI-assisted visual interpretations, which were combined with researcher observations in a triangulated qualitative framework. Comparative cross-case analysis identified six recurring sustainability aesthetics archetypes: living organism, habitat, geological harmony, modular ecosystem, cultivated landscape, and biomorphic artefact. Together, these archetypes provide a conceptual vocabulary for exploring how sustainability-related aesthetic principles might inform buildings, public spaces, and hybrid rural–urban environments. Beyond the identified archetypes, the study illustrates how accessible AI-assisted visual analysis can support the interpretation of implicit sustainability-related aesthetic patterns and complement researchers’ qualitative interpretation in architectural and design research. |
