Özet:

Background: It was emphasized that children's books should be a product of design and that the author, illustrator, designer, and publisher should work as a team in this design. Objectives: With this research, the design features of children's books were investigated, and the designs of Bursa Uludağ University Graphic Design Program students were examined. This research aims to emphasize the importance of design in children's books. Methods: In this article, the children's books prepared by Bursa Uludağ University TBMYO Design Department students as term papers in the illustration class were evaluated and examined as "visual documents". Visual documents classified in document analysis, one of the important data sources of qualitative research method, were examined, drawings, colors, and created book characters were evaluated, and theories were formed. Findings: It has been observed that the language of pictures and the language of the text in children's books do not overlap to a large extent, and this problem has been tried to be solved in student applications of design courses. Results: Children's picture books are not just a book but organized works of design. Conclusions: Recently, the quality of children's books has been frequently discussed. Children's books cover the complementary work of writers, illustrators, designers, and educators. Well-designed children's books appeal to many readers, from early childhood to adulthood and beyond. Well-designed and illustrated children's books can attract the reader with their visual structure at first sight. The fact that the children's book illustrator is confused with or considered together with the graphic designer may increase the concerns on this issue. The belief that a good illustrator can be a good designer can make many qualified painters produce books that children are not happy with. It is wrong to expect children to recognize and respect these mighty painters. Because the child is not interested in what is drawn but in what is drawn. In this sense, being a good illustrator or painter often does not mean being a good book designer. While the painter, illustrator, or artist visualizes their dreams, the designer gives meaning to that visual. Therefore, it may not always be right to expect children's book illustrations to have only artistic concerns. This expectation can negatively affect the clarity of the images and their integrity with the text. Sometimes art is not understandable to everyone. However, children's books and the pictures in these books should always be understandable. Pictures should be used not only to make the book fun but also to make it understandable. Because every clear picture is also a bridge that the child dreams, thinks, has fun with, learns, and builds between his world and the real world. In this article, the children's books that Bursa Uludağ University Technical Sciences Vocational School Graphic Design Program students wrote, drew, and designed the characters and scenes were evaluated regarding children's book design. In these examples, the stages of creating characters, drawing scenes, and designing the page and the book are considered. The fact that the text overlaps with the drawn ones is one of the important indicators of a good children's book. The books that are the subject of the research were examined with the document analysis method, one of the qualitative research methods. Document analysis includes the analysis of written materials containing information about the case or cases that are aimed to be investigated.

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