Cachet

The most influential element of the BVAC lobby’s design for public privacy is its striking aesthetic qualities. Several bold and beautiful features mark the space as its own, including bright crimson couches and spindly lamps. This “cachet” enables the space to be fully utilized as an independent workspace. Here, the sheer beauty of the space takes the place of social interaction. 

A few key elements of public design, specifically for town squares and gathering places, are outlined in University of Denver professor Dean Saitta’s blog post “What Makes a Great Public Space?” (2) His main ideas are summarized in the infographic below.

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Infographic created by author at piktochart.com.

Centrality encourages all people in a given demographic to use a space, and to use it equally. Connectedness creates a relationship with private space and ensures that varied interactions take place within the public space. Cachets, which could be something like a fountain or a large sculpture, give the space a distinct appeal, making the space feel important and allowing for the formation of new ideas.

Centrality and connectedness are not surprising as tenants of good public design, but the idea of the cachet is unique to much of the discourse around this discipline. The idea that a distinguishing feature may make a better public space is crucial to understanding the functionality of fourth spaces like the BVAC lobby. Here, the boldness of the aesthetic design gives the space an existing presence. In a beautiful setting, users can occupy the space and immediately feel relaxed and stimulated.

Many “third spaces” may function perfectly well or even function better when they are bare and simple or run-down, because the emptiness forces discussion and interaction to take the main stage. However, if this fourth space were bare and uninteresting, doing work in it would seem unpleasant and uninspired. Fourth spaces need a “cachet” to make the space feel like it is enough without any discourse.