Conceptual Framework

Public space in this research is conceptualized as the organization of physical, social, meaning and management. It is a system of setting within which certain system of activities take place. The research will be focused on the element of place and the aspect influencing its changes. It requires understanding not only of the spatial elements of space but also the social context, which in turn forces spatial changes. Development of space forced by various elements will create continuous transformation of space over time in order to satisfy human needs. The approach is thus dealing with the individual and group experience of the physical and social aspects of public space. How individuals and groups share the experiences and interpretations that bring common social, cultural and physiological characteristics and needs, and which should be reflected in appropriate elements in the physical public space. The following structure illustrates the conceptual framework of production of public space. It shows the influencing factors which continuously reshape public space.

36 Figure 3-2. Conceptual framework for understanding the production of public space

Source: Author’s Construct

i. Design and Physical Manifestation of Public Space

The first concept deals with the material elements of public space. The need is considered to be people’s motive to construct material things to fulfill a desire or to accommodate certain activities. Carr et al. (1992), argue that it is important to examine needs, since it explains the use of a place and to measure the accomplishment of the place. Place that does not meet the need of people is considered unsuccessful. He proposes that a place should be responsive to five needs, which are comfort, relaxation, passive and active engagements and discovery. The need gives rise to an idea on how it could be addressed in a physical space. It reflects the life of people, what kind of society they have developed and their culture. All this will influence what people want and how they respond to it. The needs and demands in the past might be less complex, but they were the basis for the determination of the final shape as it is now. The need raises the idea of how to fulfill it.

Ideas might come from what people need, but also could come from someone’s vision.

Here vision provides an image of what could be in the future without considering the existing need. Ideas may take the form of vision, trend, style or example which could be developed further into physical form. This is the beginning of structural organization to manifest the idea in practice and to guide form.

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In the urban design context, the idea has to be developed into physical form in order to fulfill people’s needs. Form is physical manifestation of the need and idea, which takes on a particular shape, size and material, which is measurable. The arrangement of the built form follows a certain order, a structure that organizes urban elements and gives a sense of orientation. The physical appearance also reflects the situation of its occurrence at a particular setting at a particular time, which in turn can be reproduced and modified. The physical components of public space based on Trancik (1986) consist of a three-dimensional frame, two-three-dimensional pattern and objects. Three-three-dimensional frame defines the relationship between vertical mass to horizontal space through the edge of space, the degree of enclosure and characteristics of a spatial wall. Two-dimensional pattern refers to the articulation of the ground area, including its material and composition. Objects in space are those elements such as sculpture, water features, and trees that provide accents or focal points and make the space memorable.

ii. Consumption and use of space.

Public space is created for people and it can be seen as encompassing a host of human activities. Urban public space could facilitate several activities, from trade (buying and selling), exchange of information, recreation, protection when the city is in an emergency situation, and piety or activities related to religion (French 1983). Public space as a part of built environment is created for people. It tends to be designed to fit with people, their behavior, activities, and its underlying aspects. Activity in public space can be seen from everyday experiences and events. This is what Irazabal (2008:3) explains based on the work of Flack, that activity in public space is about ‘making life’ and ‘making history’. Life-making activity is everyday life practice, which tells us that different actions need a different environment to take place in a satisfactory way. History-making relates to occasional activity, both formal and informal, and the focus is often celebration, commemoration, or public expression of emotion. These temporary events are tolerated although they interfere with daily life.

Space facilitates various activities as the representation of people’s needs and then becomes meaningful to people, embodying different meanings for different actors. Space can therefore be experienced and appeals to their feelings or emotion. It can also influence behavior of people in using a space. It is therefore not strange to accept that people can react differently to different spaces and places. The response of people may depend on a number of predispositions, current feelings and experiences. When used in new circumstances, however, these notions often take on new shades of meaning, new interpretations, which may or may not correspond to their application in other places.

Thus, while the meanings of places are rooted in their physical setting and activities, they are not a property of them, but of 'human intentions and experiences' (Relph 1976:47).

Hence, what a public space represents is a function of our own individual construction of it.

Due to contested meanings, various responses may often draw out tensions and even conflict within the urban environment. Public space can elicit a number of responses, which could create changes or transformation possibilities. This returns the cycle to the beginning, where a need arises to change existing physical public space. This process is

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influenced by a range of actors involved in the management of space, which constantly influences the need, idea, form, order and meaning in urban space.

iii. Actor and Management

Production of public space is not limited to one person. Several people influence the process including the production and management levels. Even though public space is commonly known as a space for the public, there are certain actors and institutions producing and managing it. Individuals, or a group of people, who have the knowledge and power, play the major role in the production and reproduction of public space, who in turn have control in shaping the future of a public space. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the management and agency of public space in a wider context. The actors of public space could be grouped into three, which are private or individual, group of interests, government, and community. While management is how public space is being arranged and organized, this includes coordination, regulation, maintenance and investment aspects (Carmona 2008:72). These four aspects then could be grouped into three approaches, which are state-centered, market-centered, and community-centered.

iv. Context

The production and reproduction of public space also considers the context where the process takes place, resulting in distinction of physical form and functional purposes. These factors range from political, economic and social to religious. The political nature of a society or a particular government could be associated with the respect and usage of the public space. Its management of public space can indicate the political structure of society.

The economic factor considers those economic forces behind its use, which reshape a public space. The social factors represent the effect of class structure and its mobility in the system. Also social norms based on religion and traditional beliefs define how space can be used by various groups of citizens. Observing the placement of a religious building or monument will discover the important role of religion in urban structure.

Understanding public space over certain periods will provide significant information. As historic entities, both societies and cities accumulate forms from the past that influence present and future forms and practices. Public space is part of the city and society changes dynamically over time. While in some cultures and periods of history, these changes were considered as another natural cycle that repeated itself, the measured time of the public space may create a linear order in which time flows in a direction associated simultaneously with progress and decay. Hence, it is important to understand the process through significant historical eras in relation to a city’s development. This approach views public space as a material space with social and symbolic dimension situated in a cultural setting, with both public space and cultural setting in the process of dynamic transformation over time.

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