Abstract:

Legibility of the urban space and determining its reflection in the minds of the users is important to define the space-user relations. Spatial perception in minds also explains the behavior of people in urban spaces. In this study, the legibility of the urban space and the cognitive mapping styles of the spatial dimension in the minds were discussed through the Üsküdar district of Istanbul. The aim of the study is to read Üsküdar in a spatial sense and to reveal the image points comparatively through both theoretical and user experiences. The method of the study comprises two stages. In the first stage, the urban images of Üsküdar were determined with open-ended questions and interviews by conducting a survey within “paths, nodes, landmarks, districts and edges”, which are the five basic images that Lynch put forward in his book “The Image of the City”. In the second stage, the participants were asked to draw an Üsküdar map using the free recall method. Thus, how the images presented in the first stage are expressed in cognitive maps were examined. In this context, the study also contributes to methodological approaches in urban studies, spatial legibility, and analysis processes. The findings, based on the spatial perception level of Üsküdar, revealed the field-oriented analyzes within the framework of Lynch’s five basic categories. As a result, images of Üsküdar based on user experiences and visual perception were determined. These images are important in terms of spatial memory and shaping the relationship that citizens establish with the urban space.

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