Chinese Urban Space Elements
Chinese Urban Space Elements
Chen Jinxi, Lan Yingqi, Luo Qingyun, et al.
Current Status: Book, forthcoming
Supporting Documents: Draft manuscripts (selected)
China's existing urban spatial design urgently requires systematisation to provide design references for urban regeneration. Over the past few decades, teaching, research, and practice in urban design within China have extensively referenced foreign case studies. However, differing cultural contexts and levels of social development mean that such design experiences are sometimes inapplicable to China's actual circumstances. Current domestic research has examined individual elements such as streets, squares, and traditional urban fabric, employing morphological typologies to analyse the formation and evolution of specific cities, neighbourhoods, and streets. Nevertheless, systematic research on Chinese urban spatial elements remains lacking. There is no established framework within the global mainstream research discourse, necessitating urgent supplementation. This book systematically catalogues contemporary Chinese urban spatial elements, encompassing street, square, park, and waterfront spatial typologies. It selects representative case studies, comprehensively analyses their design strategies, produces drawings, and conducts layered interpretations to summarise case characteristics and indigenous design experience.
Personal Contributions:
Led manuscript writing and revision for the book, covering 18 out of 26 urban-space cases (~100,000 words) based on historical literature and field research.
Independently produced graphical analyses for the Shanghai People's Square case, mapping its evolution from colonial-era racetrack to contemporary political center, highlighting key spatial design elements.
Figures: