A Monumental Win at the Urban Landscape Design Competition

Over the weekend, ASPECT Studios’ Cassandra Chilton along with Nirvana Kadrić, Emma Tai and Fan YI participated in Melbourne Design Week's Urban Landscape Design Cake Competition and won! The theme of the competition responded to climate change, the biodiversity crisis, and built environment practices in Australian cities.

The cake design illustrated the interconnectedness of city regulations, urban living, and ecological responsibility. Inspired by Robert Smithson’s “Monuments of the Passaic,” it described a future where unchecked dog waste, exacerbated by paved surfaces, was embedded in Naarm’s geological record.

Like Smithson’s monuments, the cake reimagined urban landscapes as metaphorical ruins, highlighting society’s failure to prioritize the environment over personal desires. This humorous juxtaposition of deliciousness and decay challenged the audience to reflect on responsible pet ownership and sustainable urban design.