Strategies of Negation in Reflective Design as an Alternative to Critical Regionalism: A Study of Contemporary Architecture in China and Japan since 1990 By Lu ZHANG Submitted in total fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of: Doctor of Philosophy June 2019 Faculty of Architecture, Building, and Planning The University of Melbourne ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3265-7130 Abstract After a long period of westernisation and modernisation, East Asian countries had begun a common effort in regenerating indigenous cultural resources to shape their own versions of modernity in response to a globalising homogenisation in architecture. It firstly emerged in Japan with a rise of Metabolist movement since the 1960s. Benefited from the Chinese market economy and opening-up policy, it happened in China only from the 1990s, amongst some most reflective architects with independent thinking. This situation puts China and Japan into parallel and even comparable positions to examine East Asian approaches to respond the universalizing forces of globalisation. This is often viewed as attempts in ‘critical regionalism’, a concept developed in European and North American academic context using mainly western cases and concepts. This raises an issue as to if this western category is applicable to the cases in East Asia. However, there is no research done that addresses this issue using cases from China and Japan in a regional framework and adopting indigenous aesthetic categories in response to formulations from the west. To fill up this gap, this research conducts a region-based comparative study on the most recent reflective design practices in China and Japan. It explores the use of traditional aesthetic ideas and strategies that – already different in the past – may depart from western categories for contemporary practice. It aims to discover new expressions and new uses of traditional aesthetic categories – conscious or unconscious – in contemporary design practices in China and Japan that may indicate an alternative path to those proposed in the Euro-American context. This thesis tries to position critical regionalism within a larger historic and geographic context. It is neither to critique the details of the former argument, nor to debate the value and significance of this concept in any abstract sense. Rather, it is to seek for an alternative to critical regionalism in the current East Asian circumstances. It aims to test and to find out an alternative approach – discovered as a strategy of negation – to critical regionalism, an approach rooted in the local cultural and aesthetic traditions. i Declaration This is to certify that the thesis comprises only my original work except where indicated in the preface; due acknowledgement has been made in the text to all other material used; the thesis is approximately 80,000 words in length, inclusive of endnotes, but exclusive of tables, maps, appendices, and bibliography. Lu ZHANG June 2019 ii Acknowledgements This thesis was carried out during the years 2014-2019 at Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning, Melbourne University. I would like to express my sincere appreciation to all those who have given me the possibility in the completion of this thesis. First and foremost, I owe my heartfelt thankfulness to Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning, Melbourne University for offering me the Melbourne Research Scholarship, to make my studies possible. My deepest gratitude goes to my thesis supervisor Associate Prof. Dr. Jianfei Zhu who encouraged and directed me. Without his illuminating instruction, enlightening guidance and continuous inspiration, this thesis would hardly have been completed. Besides, I am profoundly grateful to Dr. Marcus White who had been my co-supervisor. His encouragement, guidance and insightful comments have been essential during this work. Furthermore, I would like to thank my thesis committee members: Prof. Alan Pert, Dr. Amanda Achmadi and Dr. Hing-Wah Chau, for providing stimulating discussions, valuable advices and useful critiques on this research work. My sincere thanks must also go to Ms. Jane Trewin, research support officer of the faculty, for her kind help and assistance in keeping my progress on schedule. Finally and especially, I would like to dedicate my daughter Lydia Gao and to all family and friends for their invaluable help, unwavering support, thoughtful considerations and great confidence in me, whose continuing love has enabled me to complete this work. iii Table of Contents LIST OF FIGURES vi LIST OF CHARTS xii LIST OF TABLES xiii PART 1: INTRODUCTION Chapter 1: Introduction 1.1 The problem 1 1.2 Literature review 3 1.3 About this research 19 Chapter 2: Conceptual framework and Theoretical discussion 2.1 Discourse analysis on the theory of critical regionalism 30 2.2 East Asian traditional aesthetics employed by critical designs today 37 2.3 Further thoughts 44 2.4 Framework of this thesis 47 PART 2: CHINA (POST 1990): CASE STUDIES Chapter 3: Historical review 3.1 Historical background of Chinese modern architecture 57 3.2 Review of Chinese modern and contemporary architects 64 3.3 Key architects in contemporary China 72 Chapter 4: Case studies 4.1 Li Xiaodong 79 4.2 Wang Shu 90 Chapter 5: Analysis and Discussion 106 PART 3: JAPAN (POST 1990): CASE STUDIES Chapter 6: Historical review 6.1 Historical background of Japanese modern architecture 113 6.2 Review of Japanese modern and contemporary architects 119 6.3 Key architects in contemporary Japan 125 Chapter 7: Case studies 7.1 Kengo Kuma 134 7.2 Tadao Ando 150 Chapter 8: Analysis and Discussion 165 iv PART 4: REFLECTION AND CONCLUSION Chapter 9: Comparison 9.1 China and Japan: contrasted and compared 174 9.2 Common characteristics and tendencies 182 Chapter 10: Reflection and conclusion 10.1 Aesthetics and regionality: as critical categories in design thinking 191 10.2 Reflective design: outside the west, in China, Japan and East Asia 194 10.3 Conclusion 197 NOTES 50,109,168,200 BIBLIOGRAPHY 202 APPENDICES 213 v List of figures Figure 1.1 Four architects in four regions in this research. 24 Figure 1.2 Malcontenta and Garches, Analytical diagrams. 26 Figure 1.3 Garches, elevations. 26 Figure 1.4 Villa Stein, Garches. Le Corbusier, 1927. 27 Figure 1.5 Fernand Leger, Three Faces, 1926. 27 Figure 1.6 Bauhaus, Dessau. Walter Gropius, 1925-1926. 27 Figure 1.7 Picasso, L’Arlesienne, 1911-12. 27 Figure 1.8 Taiji-trigrammes and the concepts of ‘yin yang’. 44 Figure 1.9 Table number 12 否(pǐ) in 64 hexagrams. 44 Figure 1.10 Schematically illustrate feng shui. 44 Figure 1.11 Go (wei qi). 45 Figure 1.12 Schematic map of Neiankyo, which is an ancient city now known as 45 Kyoto. Figure 1.13 Map of Chang’an. 45 Figure 2.1 Five treaty ports in the First Opium War 1839-1842. 57 Figure 2.2 Commune of the Great Wall, 2002. 62 Figure 2.3 Sifang Parkland in Nanjing. 63 Figure 2.4 Continental Bank Building, Beijing, by Bei and Guan, 1924; Union 65 Building, Shanghai, by Palmer and Turner, 1916; Sassoon House, Shanghai, by Palmer and Turner, 1929; Metropole Hotel, Shangha, by Palmer and Turner in 1934; the Grand Theatre, Shanghai, by Laszlo Edward Hudec, 1933; Woo Residence, Shanghai, by Laszlo Edward Hudec, 1937. Figure 2.5 Building in Ginling College, Nanjing, by Hunry Killam Murphy, 66 1918-1923; Building in Yenching University, Beijing, by Hunry Killam Murphy, 1918-1927; Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum, Nanjing, by Lu Yanzhi, 1929; Shanghai City hall, by Dong Dayou, 1933; the College of Sciences in Zhongshan University, Guangzhou, by Lin Keming, 1933. Figure 2.6 Shenyang Railway Station, by Yang Tingbao, 1927. 67 Figure 2.7 Nanjing Central Hospital, by Yang Tingbao, 1933. 67 Figure 2.8 The Social Sciences Institute of the Academia Sinica, in Nanjing, by 67 Yang Tingbao, 1947. Figure 2.9 The former residence of Sun Ke, by Yang Tingbao, 1948. 67 Figure 2.10 Ten Great Buildings. 69 Figure 2.11 Cui Kai’s key designs works. 74 Figure 2.12 Liu Jiakun’s key designs works. 75 Figure 2.13 Wang Shu’s key designs works. 75 Figure 2.14 Li Xiaodong’s key designs works. 76 Figure 2.15 Key monographs of Li Xiaodong. 79 vi Figure 2.16 Regular script. 81 Figure 2.17 Cursive script. 81 Figure 2.18 Early Spring, by Guo Xi (1023-1085, Northern Song Dynasty), signed 81 and dated 1072. Figure 2.19 Old Trees Level Distance, by Guo Xi (1023-1085, Northern Song. 81 Figure 2.20 Blank background presented as water in Chinese painting. 82 Figure 2.21 Landscape after Night Rain Shower, by Kuncan (Qing Dynasty), 1660. 82 Figure 2.22 Taiji-trigrammes. 83 Figure 2.23 Table number 22 賁(bì). 83 Figure 2.24 Site Plan of the Yuhu Elementary School. 86 Figure 2.25 Floor Plans of the Yuhu Elementary School. 86 Figure 2.26 Section of the Yuhu Elementary School. 86 Figure 2.27 The Yuhu Elementary School. 87 Figure 2.28 Bridge School. 87 Figure 2.29 Floor plans of Bridge School. 88 Figure 2.30 Section of Bridge School. 88 Figure 2.31 Bridge School. 90 Figure 2.32 Key monographs of Wang Shu. 91 Figure 2.33 Wang Shu’s copy of the work of a calligraphy master, Zhong You, 92 dating back to the second century. Figure 2.34 Qian Li Jiang Shan Tu (A Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains), by 93 Wang Ximeng (1096-1119). Figure 2.35 Part of ‘Qian Li Jiang Shan Tu’ 93 Figure 2.36 Imitated Huanghe Shanqiao Mountains and Streams, by Xie Shichen 94 (1487-after 1567, Ming Dynasty). Figure 2.37 Analysis of traditional painting by author. 94 Figure 2.38 Suzhou gardens.