CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK AND METHODS FOR THE VISUAL ASSESSMENT OF LANDSCAPES.

Abstract

This essay aims to present the conceptual basis and main methods used for visual assessment of landscapes. The visual evaluation of the landscapes regained importance at the end of the 20th century in planning activities and in generating public policies for territorial management. It also re-acquired validity in academic studies. The methods for the visual evaluation of landscapes were developed during the mid-1960s to apply its results in landscape planning and processes design. Although a regularly studied subject, the methods used for it are not completely formalized and these are classified as subjective, objective and mixed. There is no single method to assess landscapes, but the methodological tendency is towards the mixed methods. Within these, there is a development of aesthetic and at the same time ecological evaluations based on the usage of indicators that allow landscape evaluation in a comprehensive manner. Although this evaluation approach is still in its initial stages and requires further research to strengthen the theoretical basis of visual evaluation, the use of eco-aesthetic indicators has empirically demonstrated the theoretical relationship established in the main theories of visual preferences.