veue

Veue is a term used in speculative design and urban planning to denote the imagined or desired sensory and experiential quality of a space. Written in lowercase, the word signals its status as a concept rather than a fixed object. The coinage typically appears in discussions that seek to bridge architectural form, environmental data, and human experience, focusing on how a place should feel rather than how it currently exists.

Origin and usage: Veue emerged in design discourse in the late 2010s as designers sought methods to communicate experiential goals to diverse stakeholders. It is not part of a formal, standardized vocabulary, and definitions vary among practitioners.

Definition: Veue refers to a provisional model or narrative of a space’s prospective experience—combining elements such as sightlines, acoustics, temperature, crowd dynamics, and social interaction. It is often expressed through visualizations, scenario stories, and interactive simulations that aim to elicit shared understanding before construction or modification.

Applications: In urban planning and architecture, veue helps teams articulate desired atmospheres and test how proposed changes might feel to inhabitants. In virtual reality and game design, it serves as a design target for immersive environments. It also appears in participatory planning as a tool to help residents anticipate outcomes and provide informed feedback.

Limitations: As a speculative construct, veue depends on assumptions about behavior and conditions; it should be used alongside empirical analysis and risk assessments to avoid overreliance on aesthetics.

See also: simulation, urban design, experiential design, virtual reality, scenario planning.