Architecture/urban planning

New future city to rise in Chengdu

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Source: CNN (2/9/21)
New ‘future city’ to rise in southwest China
Written by Jacqui Palumbo, CNN

OMA’s masterplan for the International Educational Park in the Chengdu Future Science and Technology City. Credit: Courtesy of OMA

Anew “future city” is set to spring up in southwest China, featuring an urban design intended to combine industry and technology with the pastoral beauty of the countryside.

The 4.6-square-kilometer (1.8-square-mile) site outside Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province, will be home to multiple new universities, laboratories and offices, according to the architectural firms behind the project, Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA) and Gerkan, Marg & Partners (GMP).

Known as Chengdu Future Science and Technology City, the project was unveiled last week via a series of digital renderings. The development is being built in a rural area close to the forthcoming Tianfu International Airport, which is set to open later this year and will make Chengdu only the third Chinese city, after Beijing and Shanghai, to be served by two international airports. Continue reading New future city to rise in Chengdu →

Made in China 5.2: Spectral Revolutions

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Dear Colleagues,

I am glad to announce the publication of the latest issue of the Made in China Journal. You can download it for free at this link: https://madeinchinajournal.com/2020/10/19/spectral-revolutions.

Below you can find the editorial:

Spectral Revolutions: Occult Economies in Asia

The most Gothic description of Capital is also the most accurate. Capital is an abstract parasite, an insatiable vampire and zombie-maker; but the living flesh it converts into dead labor is ours, and the zombies it makes are us. There is a sense in which it simply is the case that the political elite are our servants; the miserable service they provide for us is to launder our libidos, to obligingly re-present for us our disavowed desires as if they had nothing to do with us.
Mark Fisher, Capitalist Realism (2009) Continue reading Made in China 5.2: Spectral Revolutions →

Demolition drive

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Source: NYT (8/7/20)
Beijing Launches Another Demolition Drive, This Time in Its Bucolic Suburbs
The authorities have moved to demolish hundreds of homes in the hills near the Great Wall that were once a sign of China’s rising prosperity.
By Steven Lee Myers and Keith Bradsher

Villas slated for demolition in Wayaocun, on the northwest fringe of Beijing, last week. Credit…Keith Bradsher/The New York Times

The people who would destroy the village came in the middle of the night last week. Hundreds of guards breached the wall surrounding the village and began banging on the doors of the 140 courtyard homes there, waking residents and handing them notices to get out.

Many tried to protest but were subdued by the guards, and by this week, the demolition was already in full swing. Backhoes moved house by house, laying waste to a community called Xitai that was built in a plush green valley on the northern edge of Beijing, only a short walk from the Great Wall of China.

“This was a sneak attack to move when we were unprepared,” said Sheng Hong, one of the residents.

The destruction of the village, one of several unfolding on the suburban edges of Beijing this summer, reflects the corruption at the murky intersection of politics and the economy in China. What is perfectly acceptable one year can suddenly be deemed illegal the next, leaving communities and families vulnerable to the vagaries of policy under the country’s leader, Xi Jinping. Continue reading Demolition drive →

Urban Horror

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Urban Horror Urban Horror: Neoliberal Post-Socialism and the Limits of Visibility
By Erin Huang
Duke University Press, 2020

In Urban Horror, Erin Y. Huang theorizes the economic, cultural, and political conditions of neoliberal post-socialist China. Drawing on Marxist phenomenology, geography, and aesthetics from Engels and Merleau-Ponty to Lefebvre and Rancière, Huang traces the emergence and mediation of what she calls urban horror—a sociopolitical public affect that exceeds comprehension and provides the grounds for possible future revolutionary dissent. She shows how documentaries, blockbuster feature films, and video art from China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan made between the 1990s and the present rehearse and communicate urban horror. In these films urban horror circulates through myriad urban spaces characterized by the creation of speculative crises, shifting temporalities, and dystopic environments inhospitable to the human body. The cinematic image and the aesthetics of urban horror in neoliberal post-socialist China lay the groundwork for the future to such an extent, Huang contends, that the seeds of dissent at the heart of urban horror make it possible to imagine new forms of resistance. Continue reading Urban Horror →

Critical Perspective on Chinese Infrastructures–cfp

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Below is a brief CFP for a panel being organized by a colleague (Leif Johnson, University of Kentucky Dept. of Geography) and myself (Goeun Lee, University of Kentucky Dept. of Anthropology), for the upcoming Association for Asian Studies conference in Hong Kong, June 2020. We are looking for contributions from geographers and anthropologists doing research on or around topics including the construction, maintenance, planning, or discourse surrounding Chinese infrastructure, particularly within China.

Due to the structure of the AAS’ panel organization system, the deadline for panel proposals is quite soon, and we would hope to be able to have a clear idea of who will be participating by October 25th, which will give us time to submit requests for financial support for participants who need it, and draft a fleshed-out proposal to submit to AAS by the 30th of October. If you are interested, even with doubts about timing or funding, please get back to us as soon as possible! Continue reading Critical Perspective on Chinese Infrastructures–cfp →

Trippy new Beijing airport now open

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Source: Curbed (9/27/19)
Zaha Hadid Architects’ trippy new Beijing airport is now open
Airport as optical illusion
By Liz Stinson

Baggage claim area with elaborate white geometric curving ceiling. Hufton + Crow courtesy of ZHA

In an era of epic airport designs, Beijing is not to be outdone. The Chinese capital recently opened its newest travel hub, Beijing Daxing, a sprawling, luminous airport designed by Zaha Hadid Architects.

The 7.5 million-square-foot airport is 28 miles outside of city center and built to relieve Beijing’s existing Beijing Capital International Airport of overcrowding. The architects designed the new airport with an eye to expansion. Its starfish-shaped form will initially usher through 45 million passengers in its first year. By 2025, that number will jump to 72 million. All told, the airport will eventually service up to 100 million passengers annually. Continue reading Trippy new Beijing airport now open →

Forbidden City opens wide

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Source: NYT (8/3/19)
The Forbidden City Opens Wide as China Projects New Pride in Its Past
President Xi Jinping has pushed “cultural self-confidence” as a signature policy, and one of the beneficiaries has been the former home of emperors, neglected no longer.
By Ian Johnson

Visitors now throng the Forbidden City in Beijing. Credit: Yan Cong for The New York Times

BEIJING — For much of the past century, the Forbidden City has been an imposing void in the otherwise bustling heart of Beijing.

The 180-acre compound, where emperors and their advisers plotted China’s course for centuries, was stripped of its purpose when the last emperor abdicated in 1912. Since then, the palace grounds have at times lain empty or been treated as a perfunctory museum, with most of the halls closed to the public and the few that were open crammed with tourists on package tours.

But as the Forbidden City approaches its 600th birthday next year, a dramatic change has been taking place, with even dark and dusty corners of the palace restored to their former glories for all to see. Continue reading Forbidden City opens wide →

I. M Pei dead at 102

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Source: NYT (5/16/19)
I.M. Pei, World-Renowned Architect, Is Dead at 102
By Paul Goldberger

I.M. Pei in 1989 outside the glass pyramid he designed at the Louvre in Paris, one of his most famous commissions. “If there’s one thing I know I didn’t do wrong, it’s the Louvre,” he said. Credit Marc Riboud/Magnum Photos

I. M. Pei, who began his long career designing buildings for a New York real estate developer and ended it as one of the most revered architects in the world, died early Thursday at his home in Manhattan. He was 102.

His death was confirmed by his son Li Chung Pei, who is also an architect and known as Sandi. He said his father had recently celebrated his birthday with a family dinner.

Best known for designing the East Building of the National Gallery of Art in Washington and the glass pyramid at the entrance to the Louvre in Paris, Mr. Pei was one of the few architects who were equally attractive to real estate developers, corporate chieftains and art museum boards (the third group, of course, often made up of members of the first two). And all of his work — from his commercial skyscrapers to his art museums — represented a careful balance of the cutting edge and the conservative. Continue reading I. M Pei dead at 102 →

Penalty for maligning a building’s fengshui

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Source: NYT (4/11/19)
In China, a $30,000 Penalty for Maligning a Building’s Feng Shui
阅读简体中文版 | 閱讀繁體中文版
By Javier C. Hernández and Albee Zhang

The Wangjing SOHO developed by SOHO China in Beijing. CreditImaginechina, via Associated Press

BEIJING — A Chinese court has ordered a media company to pay nearly $30,000 to a real estate developer after it published an article that suggested a flashy building in Beijing violated the ancient laws of feng shui and would bring misfortune to its occupants.

The Chaoyang District People’s Court in Beijing ruled on Wednesday that the media company, Zhuhai Shengun Internet Technology, had damaged the reputation of the building’s developers, SOHO China, one of the largest real estate companies in China. Continue reading Penalty for maligning a building’s fengshui →

Replica of Peony Pavilion to appear in Stratford

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Source: Global Times (3/14/19)
Replica of Chinese Peony Pavilion to appear in Shakespeare’s hometown
By Xinhua

The Peony Pavilion is a masterpiece by Chinese playwright Tang Xianzu (1550-1616) from the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). A replica of the pavilion, based on pictures recorded in ancient books of the play, will appear in Shakespeare’s hometown.

Four hundred years ago, when William Shakespeare was writing his sonnets with a quill, Tang Xianzu was recording verses with a brush nearly 6,000 kilometers away.

China and Britain have hosted a series of events to commemorate Shakespeare and Tang. Among the cultural exchange contracts signed, a replica of British playwright William Shakespeare’s family house will be built in Tang’s hometown in Fuzhou, East China’s Jiangxi Province, while Fuzhou will help build the replica of the Peony Pavilion, the historical site where Tang’s story took place, in Shakespeare’s hometown. Continue reading Replica of Peony Pavilion to appear in Stratford →

Horizontal skyscraper

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Source: CNN (2/27/19)
China’s ‘horizontal skyscraper’ attraction nears completion
By Tamara Hardingham-Gill, CNN

Raffles City Chongqing

Raffles City Chongqing

(CNN) — Dubbed an engineering marvel, the highly anticipated Raffles City Chongqing project in China is nearly complete.

Devised by world-renowned architect Moshe Safdie, it measures a staggering 1.12-million-square-meters and consists of a collection of eight towers and a gigantic connecting skybridge, which is being called a “horizontal skyscraper.”

The 250-meter-long skybridge, named Crystal, is said to be one of the world’s highest.

When open, it will have a viewing gallery, sky gardens, an infinity pool and various restaurants.

If that wasn’t enough, the skybridge also transforms into a giant light beam at night time, illuminating the sky with a rousing light show. Continue reading Horizontal skyscraper →

Greater Bay Area plan

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Source: SCMP (2/18/19)
China’s State Council reveals details of ‘Greater Bay Area’ plan to turn Hong Kong and 10 neighbouring cities into economic hub
Years in the making, scheme embodies President Xi Jinping’s ambition to build innovation and finance powerhouse to rival Silicon Valley and Tokyo Bay Area
By Tony Cheung and He Huifeng

Hong Kong is positioned as the international finance, shipping and trade centre under the bay area plan. Photo: EPA-EFE

Hong Kong is positioned as the international finance, shipping and trade centre under the bay area plan. Photo: EPA-EFE

A cluster of world-class cities for work, life and leisure forms the central vision of the “Greater Bay Area” finally unveiled by the Chinese government late on Monday, laying out a road map to what it hailed as the new era of opening up.

Coming 40 years after the 1978 opening up of China, the State Council published a document setting out an ambitious plan to transform 11 cities around the Pearl River Delta into a thriving global centre of technology, innovation and economic vibrancy

The blueprint identified five “strategic orientations” that include closer integration between the mainland, Hong Kong and Macau while upholding the governing principle of “one country, two systems”. Continue reading Greater Bay Area plan →

Urban Decay conference

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Utopian Decay: Cybernetic Systems in China and the Sinophone Worlds
Friday, February 15, 2019
New York University
239 Greene Street, Floor 8, New York, NY
http://events.nyu.edu/#!view/event/event_id/224036

“The expansion of Chinese cities manifesting utopian modernity through architecture, technology and infrastructure (high-speed trains, subway systems, ever-higher buildings) coincides with re-ruralization campaigns urging return to the countryside, forced removals of migrant populations from Beijing, and “anti-poverty” campaigns consolidating rural populations into organized villages.

At the same time, ubiquitous computing has led to the rise of quantitative governance through tracking systems including social media with location services, social credit lists, app-based financial technologies, and nascent facial recognition. The boundaries of these systems are not limited by the contested borders of China: from the intensifying war on Uighurs in Xinjiang to the contested limits of offshore islands, reefs, and banks in the South China Sea; from the increasing consolidation of PRC governance in Hong Kong to the fragile independence of Taiwan; and in transnational investment, infrastructure, and peacekeeping projects in Africa, Southeast Asia, and Central Asia.

This conference brings together scholars researching the conditions of transformation in China and Sinophone worlds.”

Cutting edge Chinese architecture

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Source: Dwell (2/5/19)
12 Projects Perched at the Cutting Edge of Chinese Architecture
Celebrate the Lunar New Year with these forward-thinking designs by Chinese firms.
By Michele Koh Morollo

12 Projects Perched at the Cutting Edge of Chinese Architecture

Chinese New Year, which falls on February 5 this year, marks the year of the pig. The twelfth animal in the Chinese zodiac, the pig symbolizes wealth, success, creativity, hard work, and growth—all in all, an auspicious set of attributes that echoes the groundbreaking work demonstrated by Chinese architecture and design at the moment. To welcome the Lunar New Year, we’ve gathered 12 incredible projects by Chinese firms that are raising the bar for adaptive reuse and new builds alike.

1. Baitasi House of the Future by Dot Architects

Located in Beijing’s Baitasi hutong—a historic neighborhood known for its narrow alleys and traditional courtyard houses—this house designed by Beijing–based Dot Architects has movable furniture and storage modules at almost every turn, enabling four different layouts.

Outdoor and Small Patio, Porch, Deck Commissioned by a tech company, Dot Architects rehabbed a historic residence, outfitting it with moveable modules controlled by a smart TV and a new extension downloaded from the WikiHouse open-source system.

Commissioned by a tech company, Dot Architects rehabbed a historic residence, outfitting it with moveable modules controlled by a smart TV and a new extension downloaded from the WikiHouse open-source system. Photo by Wu Qingshan

Continue reading Cutting edge Chinese architecture →