Seeing heritage through green and blue

Abstract

Historic urban areas (HUAs) are visually and culturally sensitive environments where blue-green infrastructure (BGI) plays an increasingly important role in shaping spatial identity and environmental quality. While BGI's ecological functions are well documented, its influence on human visual perception, particularly within HUAs, remains largely unexplored. Addressing this gap, this paper proposes an integrative framework to assess how BGI affects visual experiences in heritage contexts, bridging methodological, perceptual, and user-group dimensions. By combining UAV-based photogrammetry with a three-layered perception model, the research integrates spatial analysis and empirical methods across seeing (eye-tracking), feeling (questionnaire), and understanding (interviews) layers. Street-level BGI exposure was spatially quantified and used to inform perception experiments involving both expert and general public groups. This multi-methodological, multi-layered, cross-group approach extends existing research by providing a comprehensive examination of BGI's visual impact at different cognitive levels, particularly within historic settings. Findings reveal that BGI enhances perceptual diversity, visual preference evaluation, and cognitive engagement across both groups. Although it may slightly divert attention from dominant heritage features, BGI fosters broader visual exploration and higher environmental ratings. Experts interpret BGI through more systemic and functional perspectives, while the public emphasizes emotional, aesthetic, and recreational values. Overall, this study presents a replicable framework integrating digital spatial modeling with layered perception analysis, offering new insights for evaluating and enhancing visual environments in HUAs. It supports more inclusive visual assessments and provides a basis for informed planning and selective design interventions in heritage contexts.