Renovation of vernacular architecture in rural China

Abstract

With the rapid progress of urbanization in China, a lot of villages face serious brain-drain. A serious problem of culture deterioration arises except in a few traditional villages. Most newly built rural homes are weak and unsafe due to a lack of professional support and building codes. Many large-scale rural reconstruction projects initiated by the government fail because of corruption and irresponsibility. The rural residents suffer from the lack of infrastructure and the quality of their homes. Presently, there are a few grassroots, activists, architects, architectural critics, media and NGOs working for the renovation of Chinese vernacular architecture and rural settlement. Their works include architectural writing, installation artworks and projects in rural areas. This paper is an attempt to propose sustainable approaches and alternative patterns to settle grounds for Chinese contemporary rural construction, regarding architecture, decorative arts, construction systems and user's organization for promotion, by investigating, analyzing and comparing theories and some represented samples of traditional villages, renovation projects and installation artworks from the standpoints of technology, sociology, politics, art, philosophy, history and sustainability. ; Con el rápido progreso de la urbanización en China, muchas aldeas se enfrentan a una seria fuga de cerebros. Existe un grave problema de deterioro de la cultura, excepto en algunas aldeas tradicionales. La mayoría de los hogares rurales de nueva construcción son frágiles e inseguros debido a la falta de apoyo profesional y códigos de construcción. Muchos proyectos de reconstrucción rural a gran escala iniciados por el gobierno fracasan debido a la corrupción y a la irresponsabilidad. Los residentes rurales sufren de la falta de infraestructuras y la baja calidad de sus hogares. En la actualidad, hay unas pocas personas de base, activistas, arquitectos, críticos arquitectónicos, medios de comunicación y ONGs que trabajan para la renovación de la ...