Urban Design 5 Elements

Paths  

It is actually refer to the familiar routes followed. They could be the streets, walkways, transit lines, canals, and railroads. Paths are functions as the major and minor routes of circulation that people use to move in/out. A city has a network of major routes and a neighborhood network of minor routes.

"..are the channels along which the observer customarily, occasionally, or potentially moves. They may be streets, walkways, transit lines, canals, railroads .." 

Edges

The perceived boundaries of a district is its edge. For instance, the shores, railroad, and walls. it is  the linear breaks in continuity, a dividing lines between districts. In general could be categorized into 5 types: Water Edges (Drainage), Fragmentary Edges (Landscape), Natural Elements (Mountain, Hills, Rivers), Overhead Edges and Elevated Edges (Staircases).

“..are the linear elements not used or considered as paths by the observer. They are boundaries between two phases, linear breaks in continuity: shores, railroad cuts, edges of development, walls ... " 

Districts

Areas with perceived internal homogeneity. A city is composed of neighborhoods or districts. District is a large part in the city, like area or neighborhood. They are recognizable as having some common identifying character.

“…are medium-to-large sections of the city, conceived of as having two-dimensional extent, which the observer mentally enters ‘inside of,’ and which are recognizable as having some common identifying character" 

Nodes

Centers of attraction /center of activity. It is distinguished from a landmark by virtue of its active function. Where a landmark is a distinct visual object, a node is a distinct hub of activity. Eg. the centre of district, intersection and focal point.



“…are points, the strategic spots in a city into which an observer can enter, and which are intensive foci to and from which he is traveling. They may be primary junctions, places of a break in transportation, a crossing or paths, from one structure to another..

Landmarks

Point of reference- prominent visual features of the city, but people cannot enter within them. Some landmarks are very large and seen at great distances, like Hilton Hotel in Alsancak. Some landmarks are very small (e.g. a tree within an urban square) and can only be seen close up, like a street clock at plaza. Landmarks help people to orient themselves in the city and help identify an area. Landmark, such as statue, high building, mountain, etc 

 

“…are another type of point-reference, but in this case the observer does not enter within them..They are usually a rather simply defined physical object: building, sign, store, or mountain".

Source: Kevin Lynch (1960) The Image Of the City