Production of Space in Traditional Towns and Villages against the Backdrop of “Chinese Characteristics”: A Study of Rural Form Transformation in Huizhou

Cheng, Xiao; Heath, Tim

Abstract

Traditional towns and villages in China have experienced profound formal transformation in recent years as a result of national political policies promoting rural development. By analyzing how this new production of space reflects efforts to achieve “Socialism with Chinese characteristics,” this report seeks to understand its underlying mechanisms and their relation to issues of tradition. Using the region of Huizhou in Anhui province as site for examination, the report examines forces driving change from a number of directions: from the “top-down” by government, by local people from the “bottom-up,” and in terms of design-led interventions from the “middle.” It concludes that the contextual production of space in Huizhou is being compromised, and that Huizhou building traditions are in decline, being inherited only in fragments. And it calls for a more active role by designers to nurture social awareness and raise the profile of design values in rural areas.

Citation

Cheng, X., & Heath, T. (2021). Production of Space in Traditional Towns and Villages against the Backdrop of “Chinese Characteristics”: A Study of Rural Form Transformation in Huizhou. Traditional Dwellings and Settlements Review, 32(2),

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Mar 9, 2021
• Publication Date: 2021-04
• Deposit Date: May 28, 2021
• Publicly Available Date: May 28, 2021
• Journal: Traditional Dwellings and Settlements Review
• Print ISSN: 1050-2092
• Publisher: International Association for the Study of Traditional Environments
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 32
• Issue: 2
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/5576445