EXTENDED ABSTRACT
Introduction Basic Design education constitutes a fundamental component of design disciplines, tracing its origins to Modernism and the Bauhaus school of the 1920s. Within the context of design education in Turkey, the influence of Bauhaus principles has been significant since the 1920s, shaping a design understanding that prioritizes aesthetic education and creative problem-solving. The primary objective of the Basic Design course is to cultivate students' visual sensitivity, enabling them to express observations and feelings through creative forms. A central tenet of this educational process is the principle of "unity." Unity is essential for achieving order, establishing both formal and functional integrity, and ensuring coherence within a design. This study aims to examine the application of the unity principle within the Basic Design course of landscape architecture, specifically analyzing how students integrate design elements to create a systematic and harmonious product.
Methodology The research was conducted within the scope of the "Basic Design (4+4)" course offered to first-semester students in the Department of Landscape Architecture at Karadeniz Technical University during the 2022-2023 academic year. The course curriculum progresses from abstract elements and concepts to concrete design compositions. For the final application, students were tasked with creating a concrete design product—specifically an urban object—that integrated all design principles learned throughout the semester under the theme of "Unity".
The study analyzed selected final projects to evaluate how design elements (form, color, scale, texture, and direction) were utilized to achieve unity. The evaluation criteria focused on the application of two main principles:
• Harmony: The coherence among components, such as the integration of colors, shapes, and textures.
• Contrast: The use of oppositions (e.g., in color, form, size) to create dynamic interest without disrupting the overall whole. The analysis determined whether the unity and contrast achieved in the designs were "successful" or "insufficient" based on the visual flow and balance of the compositions.
Findings The analysis of four distinct final design projects revealed specific trends in how students approach the concept of unity:
• Dominance of Harmony: Harmony was identified as the most frequently used principle across all student works. It was successfully applied across all design elements, including color, form, scale, texture, and direction. This suggests that students find the concept of harmony easier to perceive and reflect in their work when striving for unity.
• Use of Contrast: While harmony was predominant, contrast was generally utilized in the elements of scale and direction. Some works also employed contrast in color. However, contrast was rarely used in form and texture, where harmony remained the dominant choice.
• Design Integration: The findings indicate that students tend to rely on harmony to establish a connection between parts, ensuring a natural flow, whereas contrast is used more selectively to add dynamism. The works demonstrated that successful unity is achieved when colors and forms are related, while insufficient unity results from discordant elements.
Conclusion The Basic Design course plays a critical role in landscape architecture education by teaching students to merge functional and aesthetic dimensions into a meaningful whole. The study concludes that the process of creating imaginary artistic sculpture designs (urban objects) enhances students' imagination and enriches their style repertoire.
• Educational Impact: The transition from abstract concepts to concrete 3D models allows students to experience the practical aspects of design, developing their aesthetic perception and professional perspective.
• Achieving Unity: Students successfully learned to combine design elements (form, color, texture) with principles (harmony, contrast) to achieve unity.
• Student Development: The flexibility of the course encourages students to choose models that suit their individual skills, fostering creativity and enabling them to find unique solutions to design problems. Ultimately, the study confirms that basic design education is a fundamental step for future designers, equipping them with the skills to establish "mastery-balance unity" in their professional work.
Keywords: Basic Design, Unity Principle, Landscape Architecture