Public space
Filming in public spaces is legal, but shopping malls are privately owned properties and often require permission for photography and video.
In Nordic countries, like Norway, Sweden, Finland, and also Estonia, all nature areas are considered public space, due to a law, the allemansrätten (the right to common passage).
In a private—that is, non-public—forum, the government can control one's speech to a much greater degree; for instance, protesting one's objection to medicare reform will not be tolerated in the gallery of the United States Senate.
Limitations are imposed in the space to prevent certain actions from occurring—public behavior that is considered obnoxious or out of character (i.e., drug and alcohol consumption, urinating, indecent exposure, etc.)
Human geographers have argued that in spite of the exclusions that are part of public space, it can nonetheless be conceived of as a site where democracy becomes possible.
[8] Geographer Don Mitchell has written extensively on the topic of public space and its relation to democracy, employing Henri Lefebvre's notion of the right to the city in articulating his argument.
In one of the newer U.S. incarnations of the private-public partnership, the business improvement district (BID), private organizations are allowed to tax local businesses and retail establishments so that they might provide special private services such as policing and increased surveillance, trash removal, or street renovation, all of which once fell under the control of public funds.
For these "semi-public" spaces stricter rules may apply than outside, e.g. regarding dress code, trading, begging, advertising, photography, propaganda, riding rollerskates, skateboards, a Segway, etc.
The New Deal was a brief period in the US under Franklin Delano Roosevelt's government that produced a huge number of public works in an economic effort to boost employment during the depression.
[16] The New Deal projects have been credited with significantly contributing to the quality of American life and encouraging unity between all aspects of the community.
[19] Discussion has surfaced around the idea that, historically, public space has been inherently contradictory in the way that it has always been exclusive in who has been able to participate.
Patricia Phillips describes the "social desire for an art that is contemporary and timely, that responds to and reflects its temporal and circumstantial context.
Contemporary design has become obsessed with the need to save the modern city from an industrialized, commercialized, urban pit of a death bed.
[citation needed] In some cases, dance, music and other cultural events organised by the local community have been crucial in the process of revitalisation of some decayed public spaces.
[22] Contemporary perception of public space has now branched and grown into a multitude of non-traditional sites with a variety of programs in mind.
"[23] The process of developing a narrative-myth in urban design involves analysing and understanding the unique aspects of the local culture based on Cassirer's five distinctive "symbolic forms".
[25] This process involves considering factors such as lighting, colour, furniture layout, and overall atmosphere to create a space that is both efficient and engaging for its users.
Space design is commonly employed in a variety of settings, including homes, offices, restaurants, and retail stores, to name a few.
This involves designing spaces that are intuitive and free from obstructions, allowing users to navigate them without feeling frustrated or disoriented.
[25] One crucial aspect of space design is the creation of a welcoming and inclusive environment that satisfies people's social and emotional needs outside of their home and work.
This is often referred to as the "third place" concept, which describes public locales of social interaction that provide psychological comfort and emotional support.
