Scrutinizing the Gestalt Principles in Natural Landscape Perception

ABSTRACT Landscape is the integration of characteristics of the geography within sight that include elements like climate, vegetation, animals, water stock, topography, and existence of human intervention, interactions of these elements, and outcomes of the interactions. In the natural landscape, the nature features the variety contained within itself without interference of mankind. Besides, soil, water, air, vegetation, and animal stock incorporate distinctive natural landscape complexes with varying colors, textures, dimensions and forms in places where the nature can preserve its natural order. Human beings constantly receive stimuli when they are in the nature. In this sense, each individual receiving sensory input from natural landscape complexes reacts with different perceptional responses. In the current study, 20 special natural landscape complexes located within the provinces of Artvin and Rize, in the Eastern Black Sea Region of Turkey, were scored through photo assessment. Firstly, non-parametric correlation analysis was run, and correlations were spotted between factors like unity-balanced, unique-aesthetic, aesthetic-identity, unique-identity, continuity-unity, continuity-balanced, proximity-unity and proximity-continuity at a significant level. Then, implementing varimax rotation in factor analysis, directions of factors were revealed. In this way, 2 groups of factors were determined, the first one (self-identity) comprising sub factors of aesthetic, unique, dynamic, dominant, functional and figure-ground, and the latter (unity) embodying such sub-factors as similarity, balanced, continuity, proximity and plain. Finally, maximum and minimum values, as well as average values and standard deviations of the factors were determined through descriptive statistics performed. The results indicated a positive result as the average values of all the factors were around 4-5. The unity factor turned out to be more dominant compared to others with a value of 5.0430.