Recording of building development patterns in rural areas: Case of Podravska region

Abstract

The rural areas of today involve a range of different activities. On the one hand, this is perceived as changes that are reflected in the frequent abandonment of utilised agricultural areas or in the changed land use, and, on the other hand, in the continuous transformation of the image of our villages, and the artistic and aesthetic transformation of the built form (Fikfak, 2008). We can see that the connection between the house in the countryside, and the land on which it stands, has been devalued in the last decades in terms of the quality of living and functional connections inside the building and with exterior areas. The primary objective of the research was the recording of the existing patterns of development in selected rural settlements and to find the connection between the residential buildings and appertaining land, and, furthermore, the connection with adjacent structures and land. The research into development patterns in the Slovenian countryside was performed through the application on a case study, i.e. on three rural settlements of the Podravska Region (the region along the Drava River). The research methodology was based on a systematic elaboration of presentations from the geographic information system (GIS), surveying groundwork, field observations and photography of incidence of three different types of building (a traditional rural house, a standard detached house design and a contemporary rural house). The existing development patterns in the settlements were recorded and the relationships between the respective land plots and residential buildings, and the adjacent land and residential buildings, were described.

Keywords

• rural settlements
• patterns of building development
• appertaining land
• residential building