A platform for research: civil engineering, architecture and urbanism
A platform for research: civil engineering, architecture and urbanism
China's cosmetic cities: Urban fever and superficiality
During the last half of the 20th century, China experienced a period of extraordinary growth and change. In just over 50 years, the country has been transformed from a semi-feudal society dominated by foreign interests to an economic superpower wielding authority throughout the world. A particularly feverish pace of intense urbanization has been underway since the 1980s when the Chinese government instituted a program of economic reforms under the direction of Deng Xiaopeng, Mao Zedong's successor. This ‘fever’ is causing an increasing pace of physical change to the nation's urban landscape. While many industrial cities in western countries developed over a period of two centuries, China's cities have been radically transformed or established in just two decades. This paper frames the socio-economic and political context within which China's urban landscapes are now being modernized; its focus is on the post-Mao transitional period. Through a set of field observations the paper comments upon the effects of international design influences on the nation's urban landscapes. These observations raise important questions concerning the present development of the contemporary Chinese urban fabric. While it is possible to find examples of sensitive and appropriate approaches to the development of urban landscape design supported by enlightened policy-makers, such examples are rare and the norm is a ‘cosmetic’ approach to the formulation and implementation of local planning and design activities. Critical issues are raised and suggestions are made to help curb these activities that are increasingly destroying the ecological, socio-cultural and historic urban fabric of China's cities.
China's cosmetic cities: Urban fever and superficiality
During the last half of the 20th century, China experienced a period of extraordinary growth and change. In just over 50 years, the country has been transformed from a semi-feudal society dominated by foreign interests to an economic superpower wielding authority throughout the world. A particularly feverish pace of intense urbanization has been underway since the 1980s when the Chinese government instituted a program of economic reforms under the direction of Deng Xiaopeng, Mao Zedong's successor. This ‘fever’ is causing an increasing pace of physical change to the nation's urban landscape. While many industrial cities in western countries developed over a period of two centuries, China's cities have been radically transformed or established in just two decades. This paper frames the socio-economic and political context within which China's urban landscapes are now being modernized; its focus is on the post-Mao transitional period. Through a set of field observations the paper comments upon the effects of international design influences on the nation's urban landscapes. These observations raise important questions concerning the present development of the contemporary Chinese urban fabric. While it is possible to find examples of sensitive and appropriate approaches to the development of urban landscape design supported by enlightened policy-makers, such examples are rare and the norm is a ‘cosmetic’ approach to the formulation and implementation of local planning and design activities. Critical issues are raised and suggestions are made to help curb these activities that are increasingly destroying the ecological, socio-cultural and historic urban fabric of China's cities.
China's cosmetic cities: Urban fever and superficiality
ProfessorYu, Kongjian (author) / Padua, Mary G. (author)
Landscape Research ; 32 ; 255-272
2007-04-01
18 pages
Article (Journal)
Electronic Resource
Unknown
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