Heritagisation by imagery: the significance of ancient Chinese architecture in Peking the Beautiful, 1927

Reviewed by: Chinese Architecture Puay-peng Ho (bio) Fu Xinian, Guo Daiheng, Liu Xujie, Pan Guxi, Qiao Yun, and Sun Dazhang. English text edited and expanded by Nancy S. Steinhardt. Chinese Architecture. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2002. xii, 366 pp. Hardcover $65.00, ISBN 0-300-09559-7. Chinese architectural history is a relatively new discipline. Major works have been published by Western and Japanese explorers, architects, and sinologists only since the beginning of the twentieth century. The first comprehensive Chinese architectural history in a Western language was Chinesische architektur (Berlin: Verlag Ernst Wasmuth A-G, 1925) by von Ernst Boerschmann (1873-1949). This was followed by a more analytical study by D. G. Mirams, A Brief History of Chinese Architecture (Shanghai: Kelly and Walsh, 1940). Mirams' primary sources were works by Chinese researchers who had begun doing more systematic research on Chinese architecture in the late 1920s. Many, particularly Liang Sicheng and Liu Dunzhen, were key members of the Society for Research in Chinese Architecture and active between 1930 and 1945. They were instrumental in establishing Chinese architectural history as an objective, scientific discipline based on textual and material evidence interpreted through careful and rigorous scholarship. The authors contributing to Chinese Architecture, edited by Nancy S. Steinhardt, are the most accomplished students of these Chinese pioneers. Together, they have presented a book containing a wealth of information about Chinese architecture never before attempted in the English language in its scope and detail. These same authors produced the even more extensive five-volume publication in Chinese, Zhongguo gudai jianzhushi (History of ancient Chinese architecture) (Beijing: China Architecture and Building Press, 2001-2004). The historiographical approach and architectural examples found in these volumes can also be seen in Chinese Architecture, where examples include many ancient buildings and archaeological sites that have been investigated over the last fifty years. Chinese Architecture draws on these latest resources and presents to English readers a comprehensive history of Chinese architecture that is based solidly on material evidence and supported by historical accounts. This level of effort is unprecedented, and the publication of the results in the English language is much welcomed. Chinese Architecture begins with two introductions. The first, by Nancy Steinhardt, outlines the salient features of Chinese architecture, and the topics include the materials and forms of Chinese wooden buildings, the roles of the master craftsmen, and the design and construction of the buildings. This very useful introduction to Chinese architectural forms and practices is followed by discussions of the scope of Chinese architecture and of its historiography. Steinhardt notes that the authors have adopted an expansive and all-inclusive definition of architecture [End Page 77] that encompasses a broad range of building types. Most importantly, she states clearly the purpose of the book, which is "to present Chinese-style architectural history to the Western reader" (p. 3), and to this end she addresses succinctly the questions of the interpretative approach and the use of Western theory in the study of Chinese architecture. In addition to the use of contemporary research methods employed in the West, she argues that the engagement of archaeological evidence is the most appropriate tool in "a synthetic study of Chinese architecture" (p. 3), hence the approach employed in the book. This introduction prepares the reader well for the historical discussion that follows. The other introduction, by Qiao Yun, deals with the spatial and structural characteristics of Chinese buildings. In contrast to Steinhardt's introduction, Qiao's brief piece is less focused. It attempts to describe briefly the historical development of Chinese architecture, Chinese architectural forms and the factors influencing these forms, and the essential features of various building types. But the treatment of these topics is not adequate. It would have been much better if Qiao had tried to bind the individual chapters together by offering a broad sweep of architectural development, in terms of the changes in form, structure, and ornamentation over the five thousand years covered in the book. This would have served to unify the subsequent chapters, which concentrate on definite periods. The next seven chapters that comprise the book are organized chronologically, starting with the Neolithic period and ending with the Qing...

Review: <i>Chinese Architecture: A History</i>, by Nancy Shatzman Steinhardt

Over the centuries of its development, Chinese architecture has developed its specific features, which are embodied in buildings of various functional purposes - imperial palaces, temples of Taoism, Confucianism and Buddhism, small architectural forms, landscape gardening art and the like. The architecture and art of China are inherent in strict observance of the rules of Feng Shui, the correspondence of art and architecture to traditional religious beliefs, philosophy, and especially the socio-political structure of the state. Despite the change of dynasties, traditional architecture remained quite conservative, that is, we can talk about China's inherent continuity of architectural and artistic traditions. The definitive symbols by which ancient Chinese architecture is known in the world are the following: the typical silhouettes of buildings with traditional concave roofs covered with with tiling; the application of polychrome decorated supports, screens; over-saturation with details; the widespread use of complex-shaped carving, the symbolic significance of the mural plots, traditions of which are from prehistoric times, and even polychromy, where each colour had a particular meaning (the main colours were red, gold, blue, green and white).Traditional building materials were stone, wood, and ceramics. The quintessence of traditional signs of ancient Chinese architecture is the ensemble of the imperial Forbidden City in China, the central buildings of which are the three main ceremonial halls of Tài Hé Diàn (The Hall of Supreme Harmony) (Chinese. 太和 殿); Zhōng Hé Diàn (The Hall of Central Harmony) (Chinese. 中 和 殿) and Bǎo Hé Diàn (the Hall of Preserving Harmony) (Chinese 保 和 殿). In addition to them, the ensemble included palace structures, temples and sanctuaries located in the particular socio-political hierarchy. Because of its originality, traditional Chinese architecture has had a significant impact on the philosophy, art and architecture of European countries since the 17th century. It was the Chinese architecture and art tradition due to which the style of chinoiserie emerged. Chinoiserie (from French Chinoiserie, lit. Chinese), a type of orientalism that originated under the influence of the East India Trading Company, the manufacture of Delft ceramics and Golan lacquered furniture in Chinese traditions, manifested in the transformation of traditional techniques of medieval Chinese art and architecture in the art and architecture of Europe in the seventeenth century. The chinoiserie style was an imitating of Oriental art and architecture in general, of the exotic of the East in general, not limited to directly Chinese traditions. Subsequently, Chinese influences felt in later styles of historicism and modernism. At the same time, European variations cannot be considered the exact embodiment of Chinese architectural, artistic and design traditions, given the arbitrary use of forms and motifs from the Chinese philosophical and religious symbolic foundation, other polychrome and simplified forms and decor.

The formation and development of any architectural form and system has its own historical and cultural background. The ancient Chinese architectural system has a long history and characteristics inseparable from the historical development of Chinese traditional philosophy. Chinese philosophy, as a theory of human self-consciousness, does not give knowledge, but mainly gives ideas and ways of thinking for the needs of human self-development; At the same time, ancient Chinese architecture became a physical object reflecting the idea of traditional Chinese philosophy. Therefore, in order to explore ancient Chinese architecture, it is necessary to analyze and study it from the point of view of traditional Chinese philosophy. Like Confucius' thoughts on etiquette, the idea of the "doctrine of the middle" and the concept of hierarchical division; These ideas had a profound influence on ancient Chinese architecture, including urban planning, traditional dwellings, the environment, Lao Tzu's desire for harmony and unity between man and nature, worship of the gods, etc., as well as the theory that emerged later "Feng Shui", etc. temple space and garden architecture in the south of the Yangtze River. This article is devoted to the analysis of the influence of Confucianism and Taoism on the general principle of designing spaces of ancient Chinese architecture. The article selects some typical examples of ancient Chinese architecture for analysis. The following principles are manifested in the design of spaces of Chinese architecture under the influence of Confucianism and Taoism: moderation of living space; the principle of symmetry, balance and coordination; architectural hierarchy formed on the basis of the needs of "rituals"; integration of architecture and the environment; design of spaces according to "Feng Shui".

Buddhist architecture in China encompasses a vast and diverse range of buildings spanning more than fifteen hundred years, from the first centuries ce, when Buddhism was introduced into China, and extending through the 21st century. The three main forms of Chinese Buddhist architecture—temples, pagodas, and cave shrines—evolved from Indian precedents, the knowledge of which was imported into China alongside the religion. These three building types are all distinct in form and construction, contributing significantly to the richness of the Chinese architectural tradition. Because the earliest surviving timber-frame buildings in China are all Buddhist, the history of Chinese Buddhist architecture is in many ways synonymous with the history of Chinese architecture. Most of the surviving early wooden buildings are located in North China, with a particularly high concentration on Mount Wutai in Shanxi Province. These buildings were researched by the first group of Chinese architectural historians who formed the Society for Research on Chinese Architecture (Zhongguo Yingzao Xueshe 中國營造學社) in the early 20th century, and are the starting points for students of Chinese architectural history. Over the course of Chinese history, Buddhist architecture went through several significant developments; scholars have only begun to scratch the surface of Buddhist architecture after the Mongol-ruled Yuan dynasty (1279–1368), especially with regard to non-imperial buildings. Considerable regional variation is also exhibited Buddhist architecture, and much more work needs to be done in relation to architecture outside the main economic and political centers of the country in the north and southeast.

Purpose: By reviewing policies on higher education for international students, this article aims to investigate the change of social–historical context, policy issue, and policy solution and provide implications for policymaking. Design/Approach/Methods: The study used qualitative text analysis. One hundred and twelve policy papers were collected from the PKULAW database and the Ministry of Education official website. Deductive categories were constructed under themes like social–historical context, policy issue, and policy solution separately. Findings: Four stages have emerged from the text analysis. The policy focus witnessed a shift from openness to expansion and then to quality. The policies made by the central government changed a lot accordingly. China is increasingly active in higher education internationalization and eager to make the education for international students an attractive brand with high quality. To realize this target, policies should be made based on different types of international students. Additionally, it is necessary that policies provide detailed guidance and accelerate capacity building in all majors. Originality/Value: This study contributes to existing knowledge of higher education for international students in China by providing qualitative policy text analysis, and the insights gained from this study may be of assistance to policymaking in the future.

Chinese ancient architectures are valuable culture heritages for human beings, and most of these ancient architectures are timber structures.[ Since most of the survived ancient architectures were built long time ago and suffered all kinds of nature disasters, their structures were damaged severely, and needed to be effectively reinforced and repaired. As the key element of Huizhou culture, Hui-style architecture is the representative of Chinese ancient architectures. Based on Hui-style architectures current damage situations, this paper studies the strengthen methods and current study situations of the timber structure of the ancient architectures from beam, column, mortise and tenon joint, corbel bracket, retaining structure and other aspects. It also studies the shortage of the traditional reinforcement methods, and discusses the usage of the new reinforcement material CFRP in the timber structure of the ancient architecture. In the end, the writer believes that finding sufficient methods to ensure the reinforcement effect, overcoming the shortage of the traditional reinforcement method, as well as ensuring the original appearance of the components when carry out the reinforcement, is the direction of the reinforcement study of Hui-style architecture in the future.

Review: Zhongguo Gudai Jianzhu Shi (A History of Traditional Chinese Architecture) by Liu Dunzhen; Zhongguo Gudai Jianzhu (Ancient Chinese Architecture) by Chinese Academy of Architecture; Zhongguo Chengshi Jianshe Shi (A History of the Construction of Chinese Cities) by Dong Jianhong; Ying Xian Muta (Ying Xian Timber Pagoda) by Cheng Mingda; Ancient Architecture of Chengde by Tianjin University Architecture Department and

Color paintings such as painted facades and interiors are important decoration elements of ancient Chinese architectures. The color of the paintings usually fades over time due to exposure to strong light, high humidity, high temperatures, and other environmental factors. In order to restore or reproduce the color appearance of ancient architecture paintings correctly, it was necessary to study the color degradation process of such paintings. To meet the needs of on-site colorimetric measurement of the paintings on ancient Chinese architectures, we propose using a digital color camera and the CDS (Color Design System) to measure and evaluate the colors of such paintings. The CDS is a color order system recommended by the Chinese national technical committee for color standardization (SAC/TC 120) in 2017 (GB/Z 35473-2017). The current version of the CDS atlas contains about 2740 samples which were uniformly distributed on the whole color space, and can be used to set up the colorimetric characterization model for the digital camera. Particularly, the digital CDS lookup table contains over 400 thousand samples, and it can be used to express the color of paintings on ancient Chinese architectures. In the experiment, a digital color camera was used to capture the colors of the paintings on the ancient Chinese architectures of different years based on the CDS and polynomial transform method. Moreover, a linear interpolation method was proposed for calculating and predicting the color degradation of such paintings. The experimental results show that with the increase in years, the color hue of the paintings changes slowly, while the lightness and the chroma of them fade obviously. In the future, more ancient architectures of different years and from different places should be selected as experimental samples to improve the method and the results of the paper.

Stakeholder concerns of air pollution in Hong Kong and policy implications: A big-data computational text analysis approach

We propose granular computing (GrC) on ontology as a solution to the problem of modeling complex architectures. We expressed the architectures formally as ontology domains, which include two components: the set of basic vocabularies and a knowledge library of rules. The set of basic vocabularies contains elements or basic architecture components. The knowledge library comprises rules that control the combination and construction of the basic elements. As the rules are often given by architectural experts subjectively, they may contain redundant, conflicting, and overlapping rules, especially in certain styles of ancient southeast Chinese architecture. It is difficult to distinguish or identify these rules; therefore, we apply the multilevel approach on ontology [Y. Liu, C. Xu, Q. Zhang, and Y. Pan, ¿Smart architect: Scalable ontology-based modeling for ancient chinese architecture,¿ IEEE Intell. Syst., vol. 23, no. 1, pp. 49-56, Jan./Feb. 2008] and approximation theory of GrC. In this process, we present a measurement that is based on roughness functions to evaluate the degrees of approximation between the selected set and certain architecture domains. With the monotonicity characteristic of roughness functions, we can design a heuristic algorithm to select a suitable knowledge base (rule set) to assist in integrating the parts into final architectures, via several levels. Experiments with a real architectural project, i.e., modeling ancient southeast Chinese architectures, show that our method is effective and may simplify the design of the automodeling system and enhance its performance.

Architectural history in China is neither an independent scholarly discipline nor a subfield of some broader intellectual discourse.1 Nor is it the passion of educated laymen's spare time. In the Chinese educational system, architecture most often is separate from history. Buildings from earlier times and the methods or principles by which they were constructed are investigated primarily by students of architectural design or structural engineering. Decoration on buildings, especially exterior ornament, is studied to a certain extent, as are styles of Chinese architecture, especially imperial on the one hand and regional on the other, mainly for the purpose of historic preservation. Architectural history is usually part of an architect's training. The study of buildings or cities as a means of understanding historical trends, social movements, or human experience-the kinds of issues that have led to the rise of urban studies programs in history departments in North America-are not part of the mainstream Chinese educational process. Architectural history usually is a requirement of architecture students from the B.Arch. through the Ph.D. level in China, but its mastery is optional in terms of a student's success.2 In the Chinese higher educational process, architectural history is perhaps well-characterized as a Western construct, for beginning only in the twentieth century can one find a Chinese equivalent for the words in this combination. Jianzhu is the word used in China today for architecture. This modern word is formed from the characterjian, which may mean to build, construct, erect, or establish, and zhu, which may also mean to build, but in its purer meaning refers to beating or ramming hard, a technique common in Chinese wall construction since the Neolithic period. Premodern Chinese (before around the mid-nineteenth century) employs the wordyingzao for what is best translated as construct. The first character (ying) takes as its primary meaning to regulate or manage, and zao can mean to build, but also may mean to institute.3 In premodern China, the government regulated important institutional and religious construction, and the books in which these regulations are preserved were commissioned by the court and written by scholar-officials.4 Inherent in the meaning ofyingzao, then, is the fundamental link between Chinese officialdom and architecture. History, translated as lishi (li meaning to calculate, pass through, or successive, and shi meaning chronicles or annals), is not a new concept in China: the Chinese are among the oldest cord-keeping civilizations. However, the word used for chitectural history in China today can be simplyjianzhu, architecture. University courses on architectural history a e dentifiable by the characters that precede the wordjianzhu. A course on Chinese architectural history is calle Zh ngguoJianzhu as often as ZhongguoJianzhu Shi, and one on Western architecture, XifangJianzhu, one on modern (ca. 1840-1949) architecture, Jindai Jianzhu, and one on contemporary architecture, Xiandai Jianzhu, as often as Xifang Jianzhu Shi, Jindai Jianzhu Shi, or Xiandai Jianzhu Shi. The intent here is not philological digression. The names, I uggest, are precise and therefore very significant. A university course n Chinese architecture, Western architecture, or mode n architecture is primarily a look at the buildings of China, the West, or moder times. The subject matter is buildings first, in particular, how they are put together, with some attention given to the evolution of technology and stylistic features. The next directions of investigation, which, as we shall see below, are also reflected in co se titles, are ways that structures relate to environmental, geographic, or climatic issues. Historical background and its inte pretation are not systematically provided and not essential to the successful completion of this kind of course. Courses called Zhongguo Jianzhu, in every program discussed below, are taught chronologically. The logic of the presentation sequence is development of form and style, and the justifications are the need to know how to evaluate a newly identified old building, how to restore it or others in need of preservation, and, occasionally, how to design a building for which an evocation of premoder architecture is sought. So far, topics such as Building in the Age of the Huizong Emperor or Architecture in the Period of Dynastic Disunion have not been taught in China. Even courses onjianzhu, buildings alone, of a time frame as specific as the Song dynasty (960-1279), in which the Huizong emperor reigned, or the period of Northern and Southern Dynasties (ca. the third through sixth centuries), when more than

The copper hall was a special type of building in Chinese architectural history. It imitates traditional Chinese timber architecture in terms of structure, but with all its components cast out of copper alloys and then assembled. During the Wanli reign of the Ming dynasty, three such Buddhist copper halls were constructed from 1602 to 1607, and set up at Emei Mountain, Baohua Mountain, and Wutai Mountain. The present article makes several points. First, the three copper halls were from the same design, as determined through historical texts and on-site investigation. In conception, they may have been inspired by Taoist copper halls, but did not follow those particular designs. Furthermore, the author has created a statistical database of all the inscriptions from Wutai Copper Hall and loaded the data into the GIS platform, which was keyed to a historical map of 1582. The data suggest that the patrons of Wutai Copper Hall lived in areas along the Grand Canal, the Sanggan River, and the Fen River; and that the patrons were numerous. The Chan Master Miaofeng was not only an organizer but also an experienced project manager who preferred brick, stone and metal to timber. Under his organizing and management, people from different social classes and communities willingly contributed. Finally, this paper contextualizes the Buddhist building projects of the late Wanli period. The inscriptions in Wutai Copper Hall reliably record a vivid landscape of Ming society. The donation initiated by Miaofeng was not merely a personal action but also an influential event the effect of which lasted for years. The numerous patrons were organized not by the power afforded by any state representative, but by networks of monks, nuns, merchants, local religious communities, and pilgrim associations. Copper halls, especially Wutai Copper Hall, are excellent evidence for how religious monumental projects were organized, managed, and implemented in late Ming society.

Ancient Chinese architecture is an important aspect of traditional Chinese culture and has been studied by many scholars around the world via historical documents, photographs, and three-dimensional models. In this paper, a building information model (BIM) and virtual reality (VR) and video analysing technology are used to develop a maintenance and virtual training system for ancient architecture. A digital ancient architecture model that includes a three-dimensional model and attributes is established, and the model can be visualized using a VR video processing system. Based on this system, we propose a method of fire detection in the maintenance system to ensure the safety of ancient buildings. After performing lightweight processing of the three-dimensional model, the Forge platform, which can achieve high-speed browsing via Web browsers, is used to perform the virtual construction, dismantling and other functions. By providing an immersive experience, users will develop a deeper understanding of ancient architectural structures and construction processes, which will accelerate research on ancient architecture.

May 01 2023 Zhang 瘴, Shu 暑, and the Traveling Embassy Avoiding Heat at the Mountain Resort of Emperor Qianlong Y. L. Lucy Wang Y. L. Lucy Wang Y. L. Lucy Wang is an architectural historian, curator, educator, and Ph. D. candidate at Columbia University's Department of Art History and Archaeology. Her dissertation traces the emergence of professionalized architecture in the Greater China region, examining how a hygienic consciousness entered into architectural expertise and how architects, doctors, land-surveyors, and engineers integrated new understandings of disease into their work, and her research broadly addresses global modernisms and diasporic architecture. Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Scholar Author and Article Information Y. L. Lucy Wang Y. L. Lucy Wang is an architectural historian, curator, educator, and Ph. D. candidate at Columbia University's Department of Art History and Archaeology. Her dissertation traces the emergence of professionalized architecture in the Greater China region, examining how a hygienic consciousness entered into architectural expertise and how architects, doctors, land-surveyors, and engineers integrated new understandings of disease into their work, and her research broadly addresses global modernisms and diasporic architecture. Online ISSN: 2572-7338 Print ISSN: 1091-711X © 2023 Y. L. Lucy Wang2023Y. L. Lucy Wang Thresholds (2023) (51): 14–25. https://doi.org/10.1162/thld_a_00780 Cite Icon Cite Permissions Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Views Icon Views Article contents Figures & tables Video Audio Supplementary Data Peer Review Search Site Citation Y. L. Lucy Wang; Zhang 瘴, Shu 暑, and the Traveling Embassy Avoiding Heat at the Mountain Resort of Emperor Qianlong. Thresholds 2023; (51): 14–25. doi: https://doi.org/10.1162/thld_a_00780 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentAll JournalsThresholds Search Advanced Search This content is only available as a PDF. © 2023 Y. L. Lucy Wang2023Y. L. Lucy Wang Article PDF first page preview Close Modal You do not currently have access to this content.