Courtyard Housing and Cultural Sustainability: Theory, Practice, and Product

396 Pages·2013·16.678 MB·English

by  Donia Zhang

Courtyard Housing and
Cultural sustainability
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Courtyard Housing and
Cultural sustainability
theory, Practice, and Product
donia ZHang
Oxford Brookes University, UK
© donia Zhang 2013
all rights reserved. no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.
donia Zhang has asserted her right under the Copyright, designs and Patents act, 1988, to
be identified as the author of this work.
Published by
ashgate Publishing limited ashgate Publishing Company
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The Library of Congress has cataloged the printed edition as follows:
Zhang, donia.
Courtyard Housing and Cultural sustainability: theory, Practice, and Product. –
(design and the built Environment series)
1. architecture – Philosophy. 2. architecture and society. 3. sustainability.
4. sustainable architecture. 5. Courtyard houses. 6. Courtyard houses – China –
History – 20th century. 7. Communities.
i. title ii. series
720.1’03–dc23
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Zhang, donia, 1967-
Courtyard Housing and Cultural sustainability: theory, Practice, and Product /
by donia Zhang.
pages cm. – (design and the built Environment)
includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Courtyard houses. 2. architecture and society. i. title.
na7523.Z49 2013
728’.31–dc23 2012038425
isbn 9781409405030 (hbk)
isbn 9781409405047 (ebk-PdF)
isbn 9781409471585 (ebk-ePub)
V
Printed and bound in great britain by the
MPg books group, uK.
Contents
List of Tables vii
List of Figures ix
Acknowledgements xix
Foreword xxi
Prologue 1
1 Introduction: Lost Link between Heaven and Earth 5
Part I: Cultural SuStaInabIlIty
2 Four Pillars of Sustainable Development: Courtyard Housing
and Cultural Sustainability 21
3 Four Key Themes in Chinese Philosophy on City Planning
and Courtyard House Design 39
Part II: ClaSSICal Courtyard HouSeS of CHIna
4 Form and Environmental Quality, Space and Construction
Quality of Classical Courtyard Houses 67
5 Matters of Social Cohesion, Time and Cultural Activities
in Classical Courtyard Houses 115
Part III: new Courtyard HouSIng
6 Historic Preservation and Modernization of Classical
Courtyard Houses 145
7 Harmony with Heaven: Form and Environmental Quality of
the New Courtyard Housing 173
8 Harmony with Earth: Space and Construction Quality of the
New Courtyard Housing 211
9 Harmony with Humans: Matters of Social Cohesion in
the New Courtyard Housing 241
vi Courtyard Housing and Cultural Sustainability
10 Harmony with Self: Time and Cultural Activities in the
New Courtyard Housing 263
Part IV: Culturally SuStaInable arCHIteCture
11 Four Cornerstones of Culturally Sustainable Architecture 287
Part V: future new Courtyard garden HouSeS
12 Conclusion: In Search of Paradise 309
Epilogue 331
Appendix 333
References 341
Index 371
List of Tables
1.1 Extent of survival of siheyuan and hutong in inner Beijing 13
3.1 Connotations of Yin Yang Yuan symbol 63
4.1 Summary of attributes of classical courtyard houses of
Beijing and Suzhou 112
7.1 Summary of the form of the renewed/new courtyard housing 209
8.1 Summary of the space of the renewed/new courtyard housing 240
11.1 Four cornerstones of culturally sustainable architecture in China 306
12.1 Beijing new courtyard garden house density and plot ratio 327
12.2 Suzhou new courtyard garden house density and plot ratio 328
12.3 Summary of the proposed new courtyard garden houses 329
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List of Figures
0.1 My memory of childhood home environment in Harbin 2
0.2 My memory of Liuhai Primary School in courtyard
style in Beijing 3
1.1 Map of China showing the northern, southern, and western divisions
with locations of Beijing and Suzhou as the case study cities 6
1.2 House types across China showing the courtyard as a
common feature 7
1.3 A two-courtyard house of Beijing 8
1.4 A typical or standard three-courtyard house of Beijing 8
1.5 A relatively large four-courtyard house of Beijing 9
1.6 A five-courtyard house of Beijing with gardens 9
1.7 A large courtyard house compound in Suzhou 10
1.8 A typical southern type of courtyard house complex
with small courtyards and gardens in Yangzhou, China 10
1.9 Decline of a courtyard house compound in Beijing from
early 1950s – 1970s – 1980s 12
1.10 Comparison of the relationship between open and closed
spaces on building lots of the same size in China and the
United States 15
2.1 The earlier 3-pillar sustainable development framework 23
2.2 The accepted 4-pillar sustainable development framework 23
2.3 A conceptual sustainability framework inspired by wuxing 36
2.4 Wuxing (Five Phases) in Chinese philosophy 36
3.1 The most popular Yin Yang symbol 40
3.2 The Nine Constellations Magic Square Matrix (九宫图) 42
3.3 The Nine Squares System (井田制) 45
3.4 The ideal capital city in imperial China from the Record of
Trades in Rituals of Zhou 47
3.5 Evolution of Beijing since the 12th century with a
chessboard urban pattern persistently remaining throughout
the dynastic period 50
3.6 Beijing’s traditional courtyard houses were prevalent, as
shown in this photo taken probably in the 1980s 51
3.7 The Pingjiang map (dated 1229) from a stone stele showing
a double-chessboard, road-river system 54
3.8 Partial scroll painting Suzhou Flourishing (姑苏繁华图)
by Xu Yang in 1759 shows the courtyard house system 55